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A  CRYSTAL  AGE 


A  CRYSTAL  AGE 


By 
W.   H.   HUDSON 

AUTHOR    OF    "THE    PURPLE    LAND,"    "A    SHEPHERD'S    LIFE,"    ETC, 


WITH   AN   INTRODUCTION   BY 

DR.   CLIFFORD   SMYTH 


Then  gin  I  thinke  on  that  which  Nature  sayd, 
Of  that  same  time  when  no  more  change  shall  be 
But  stedfast  rest  of  all  things  firmely  stayd 
Upon  the  pillours  of  Eternity. 


NEW  YORK 
E.  P.  DUTTON  AND  COMPANY 

681   FIFTH  AVENUE 


Published  by  E.  P.  DUTTON  &  CO.,  1917 


Foreword  Copyright  in   1916, 
By  E.  P.  DUTTON  &  CO. 


First  American  Edition  igij 
Second  Printing  June,  2922 


•9rintrt<  in  H*  tHnfteo  States  of  3mm'ta 


Tc.ft. 

tia- 


PREFACE 

Romances  of  the  future,  however  fantastic 
they  may  be,  have  for  most  of  us  a  perennial 
if  mild  interest,  since  they  are  born  of  a  very 
common  feeling — a  sense  of  dissatisfaction 
with  the  existing  order  of  things,  combined 
with  a  vague  faith  in  or  hope  of  a  better 
one  to  come.  The  picture  put  before  us  is 
false;  we  knew  it  would  be  false  before 
looking  at  it,  since  we  cannot  imagine  what 
is  unknown  any  more  than  we  can  build 
without  materials.  Our  mental  atmosphere 
surrounds  and  shuts  us  in  like  our  own 
skins;  no  one  can  boast  that  he  has  broken 
out  of  that  prison.  The  vast,  unbounded 
prospect  lies  before  us,  but,  as  the  poet 
mournfully  adds,  "clouds  and  darkness  rest 
upon  it."  Nevertheless  we  cannot  suppress 
all  curiosity,  or  help  asking  one  another, 
What    is    your    dream — your    ideal?      What 


vi  PREFACE 

is  your  News  from  Nowhere,  or,  rather,  what 
is  the  result  of  the  little  shake  your  hand 
has  given  to  the  old  pasteboard  toy  with  a 
dozen  bits  of  colored  glass  for  contents5? 
And,  most  important  of  all,  can  you  present 
it  in  a  narrative  or  romance  which  will  enable 
me  to  pass  an  idle  hour  not  disagreeably? 
How,  for  instance,  does  it  compare  in  this 
respect  with  other  prophetic  books  on  the 
shelf? 

I  am  not  referring  to  living  authors;  least 
of  all  to  that  flamingo  of  letters  who  for  the 
last  decade  or  so  has  been  a  wonder  to  our 
island  birds.  For  what  could  I  say  of  him 
that  is  not  known  to  every  one — that  he  is 
the  tallest  of  fowls,  land  or  water,  of  a  most 
singular  shape,  and  has  black-tipped  crimson 
wings  folded  under  his  delicate  rose-colored 
plumage?  These  other  books  referred  to, 
written,  let  us  say,  from  thirty  or  forty  years 
to  a  century  or  two  ago,  amuse  us  in  a  way 
their  poor  dead  authors  never  intended. 
Most  amusing  are  the  dead  ones  who  take 
themselves  seriously,  whose  books  are  pulpits 
quaintly  carved  and  decorated  with  precious 


PREFACE  vii 

stones  and  silken  canopies  in  which  they  stand 
and  preach  to  or  at  their  contemporaries. 

In  like  manner,  in  going  through  this  book 
of  mine  after  so  many  years  I  am  amused  at 
the  way  it  is  colored  by  the  little  cults  and 
crazes,  and  modes  of  thought  of  the  'eighties 
of  the  last  century.  They  were  so  important 
then,  and  now,  if  remembered  at  all,  they 
appear  so  trivial !  It  pleases  me  to  be 
diverted  in  this  way  at  "A  Crystal  Age" 
— to  find,  in  fact,  that  I  have  not  stood  still 
while   the  world  has  been  moving. 

This  criticism  refers  to  the  case,  the  habit, 
of  the  book  rather  than  to  its  spirit,  since 
when  we  write  we  do,  as  the  red  man 
thought,  impart  something  of  our  souls  to  the 
paper,  and  it  is  probable  that  if  I  were  to 
write  a  new  dream  of  the  future  it  would, 
though  in  some  respects  very  different  from 
this,  still  be  a  dream  and  picture  of  the 
human  race  in  its  forest  period. 

Alas  that  in  this  case  the  wish  cannot 
induce  belief!  For  now  I  remember  another 
thing  which  Nature  said — that  earthly  excel- 
lence can  come  in  no  way  but  one,  and  the 


viii  PREFACE 

ending  of  passion  and  strife  is  the  beginning 
of  decay.  It  is  indeed  a  hard  saying,  and 
the  hardest  lesson  we  can  learn  of  her  with- 
out losing  love  and  bidding  good-by  forever 
to  hope. 

W.  H.  H. 

September  1906. 


A  FOREWORD 

This  is  not  an  old  book.  It  is  recorded,  indeed, 
that  it  made  its  first  appearance  some  thirty 
years  ago.  Then,  twenty  years  after,  a  few  addi- 
tional copies  were  printed.  Now  it  is  again 
venturing  forth  from  the  sylvan  solitude  of  its 
dreams — and  this  time  the  world,  that  has  learned, 
during  the  last  half  decade,  of  the  marvelous 
genius  of  the  author  of  A  Crystal  Age,  is  ready 
for  it. 

Some  books  are,  in  a  sense,  old  before  they  are 
born.  They  bring  nothing  new  with  them;  they 
reflect,  more  or  less,  the  prevailing  thought,  or 
literary  fashion,  of  the  chronological  period  to 
which  they  belong;  hence  they  achieve  an  imme- 
diate popularity.  In  those  excellent  volumes  of 
literary  criticism,  for  instance,  Hazlitt's  English 
Poets  and  The  Spirit  of  the  Age,  we  read  much  of 
the  author's  great  contemporaries  of  a  hundred 
years  ago — Byron,  Scott,  Wordsworth,  Coleridge, 
Southey,  and  a  score  of  others  whose  fame  has 


x  A  FOREWORD 

long  since  passed  away.  How  strangely  obscured 
was  Hazlitt's  vision  by  the  clouds  of  his  own  day ! 
For  he  gives  only  a  passing  reference  to  Keats; 
of  Shelley  there  is  no  mention.  The  omission 
seems  inconceivable  at  first,  in  view  of  the  fact 
that  this  glorious  star  of  English  poetry  had  its 
rise  and  its  setting  before  The  Spirit  of  the  Age  was 
published.  It  is  not  to  be  wondered  at,  however, 
when  one  realizes  how  far  in  advance  Shelley  was 
cf  his  day.  For  all  practical  purposes  of  literature 
this  matchless  singer  of  a  golden  age,  without 
whom  the  great  poets  of  the  last  half  century 
could  scarcely  have  found  their  own  worlds  of 
song,  first  came  into  existence  on  that  memorable 
morning  in  London  when  a  youth,  Robert  Brown- 
ing by  name,  picked  up  a  priceless  volume  of  his 
poetry  from  an  old  bookstall,  and  was  himself 
kindled  to  immortal  utterance  by  the  divine  fire 
that  flashed  upon  him  from  its  pages.  After  that 
the  world  was  ready;  Shelley's  poetry  was  really 
published — just  as  the  world  is  at  last  ready  for 
the  books  of  W.  H.  Hudson. 

Few  names  in  literature  come  together  more 
appropriately  than  Shelley's  and  Hudson's,  and 
this  appropriateness  is  emphasized  in  the  case  of  a 
book  like  A  Crystal  Age.     The  kinship  is  not  due 


A  FOREWORD  xi 

merely  to  the  tardiness  with  which  recognition 
has  been  accorded  both  men.  It  is  inherent  in  the 
delicacy  of  imagination,  the  profound  love  of 
nature,  the  unswerving  loyalty  to  truth,  the  eagle 
vision  glimpsing  salvation  on  mountain  peaks 
rising  above  the  reek  of  human  suffering,  that 
characterizes  their  work.  Mr.  Hudson,  it  is  true, 
does  not  choose  poetry  for  his  medium.  But,  even 
in  the  matter  of  literary  style,  there  is  a  limpidity 
in  his  periods,  a  grace,  an  utter  simplicity  that 
reminds  one  of  the  pure  harmonies  of  the  Shelleyan 
muse.  Mr.  Galsworthy,  than  whom  no  one  is 
better  fitted  to  speak  on  such  a  subject,  says: 
"As  a  stylist,  Hudson  has  few,  if  any,  living  equals. 
.  .  .  To  use  words  so  true  and  simple,  that  they 
oppose  no  obstacle  to  the  flow  of  thought  and 
feeling  from  mind  to  mind,  and  yet  by  juxtaposi- 
tion of  word-sounds  set  up  in  the  recipient 
continuing  emotion  or  gratification — this  is  the 
essence  of  style;  and  Hudson's  writing  has  pre- 
eminently this  double  quality."  The  gift  is  rare 
in  any  form  of  writing;  its  presence  in  a  narrative 
of  the  fairy-like  quality  possessed  by  A  Crystal 
Age  is  a  source  of  never-ending  delight  to  the  reader. 
Here,  thought  is  perfectly  wedded  to  sound.  The 
tale  is  one  of  simple,  primal  things,  of  men  and 


xii  A  FOREWORD 

women  adoraoiy  ignorant  of  the  dust  and  surge, 
the  trivialities  and  complexities  of  cities;  and  it  is 
uttered  in  the  clear-flowing  syllables  that  poets 
capture  from  brooks,  rain-kissed  trees,  the  rustle 
of  wind-swept  grasses. 

It  has  been  said  that  A  Crystal  Age  renders  a 
perfect  picture  of  a  Socialist  state.  If  it  does,  I 
doubt  very  much  that  it  was  planned  to  do  so 
by  its  author.  Mr.  Hudson  is  too  profoundly  an 
artist,  too  intrinsically  the  teller  of  a  story  for  the 
story's  sake,  to  shape  his  narrative  to  dogmatic 
ends.  He  himself  tells  us  that  A  Crystal  Age  is 
"a  dream  and  a  picture  of  the  human  race  in  its 
forest  period."  It  belongs  to  the  rare  type  of 
fiction  that  has  given  us  Gulliver  and  Erewhon. 
But  it  is  more  joyously  free  from  satirical  purpose 
than  either  of  these.  The  story  itself  is  a  delicious 
revel  of  fancy,  unmarred  by  the  doctrinal  digres- 
sions that  usually  obtrude  upon  these  fictional 
peeps  into  an  ideal  future.  It  gives,  unques- 
tionably, the  poet-naturalist's  view  of  things  as 
they  should  be — as  they  may  be,  when  cruelty, 
prejudice,  and  ignorance  are  banished  from  the 
earth;  and  just  because  it  gives  a  poet-naturalist's 
view,  it  is  big  and  free  enough  to  discard  the 
shackles  of  the  mere  doctrinaire. 


A  FOREWORD  xiii 

If  one  were  looking  for  the  secret  of  Hudson's 
unique  power  as  a  novelist,  the  quality  that 
differentiates  him  from  all  other  writers  in  this 
field  of  literature,  it  would  be  found  in  his  delicate 
apprehension  of  the  life  that  seethes  beneath 
apparently  inanimate  things.  His  nature  essays 
are  the  very  best  of  their  kind,  not  because  they 
are  richer  than  others  in  minute,  painstaking 
observation  of  facts  in  natural  history,  but  because 
they  are  interpretive  of  the  human  element  in 
nature.  He  sees  the  birds,  the  trees,  the  flowers, 
the  most  harmless  and  the  most  ferocious  of 
animals,  in  terms  of  life.  There  is  nothing  either 
above  or  below  his  interest.  His  book,  A  Shepherd's 
Life,  for  instance,  is  not  only  a  storehouse  of 
quaint  and  varied  information,  given  with  the 
inimitable  "artless  art"  peculiar  to  its  author;  it 
is  a  reconstruction  of  an  entire  countryside. 
Whoever  is  fortunate  enough  to  read  it  will  retain 
in  his  memory  a  vivid  world  of  primitive  living, 
symmetrical,  complete  in  all  its  parts.  Not  even 
Hardy's  Under  the  Greenwood  Tree  leaves  so 
definite,  finished  a  picture  of  life  in  a  placid,  rural 
community  as  this.  The  reason  is  that  Hudson 
lives  his  books  before  he  writes  them.  For  him, 
a  barren  moor  is  anything  but  barren.     Put  him 


xiv  A  FOREWORD 

in  the  dullest  of  surroundings  that  one  can  find  in 
nature,  and  he  still  has  the  creative  vision  that 
belongs  to  seership.  It  is  this  faculty  in  Hudson 
for  sensing  the  psychology  in  the  inanimate  that 
attracted  the  late  Professor  William  James,  who 
quotes  at  length,  from  Idle  Days  in  Patagonia,  in 
his  Talks  to  Students.  The  extract  is  worth  giving, 
not  only  for  its  intrinsic  beauty,  but  as  an  illus- 
tration of  Hudson's  method,  the  mood  out  of 
which  he  creates  the  vision  of  an  ideal  state 
sparkling  and  real  as  that  contained  in  A  Crystal 
Age. 

"The  intense  interest  that  life  can  assume," 
says  Professor  James,  "when  brought  down  to 
the  non-thinking  level,  the  love  of  pure  sensorial 
perception,  has  been  beautifully  described  by  a 
man  who  can  write, — Mr.  W.  H.  Hudson, — in  his 
volume,  Idle  Days  in  Patagonia. 

I  spent  the  greater  part  of  one  winter,  (says  this 
admirable  author),  at  a  point  on  the  Rio  Negro, 
seventy  or  eighty  miles  from  the  sea.  .  .  . 

It  was  my  custom  to  go  out  every  morning  on 
horseback  with  my  gun,  and,  followed  by  one  dog, 
to  ride  away  from  the  valley ;  and  no  sooner  would 
I  climb  the  terrace,  and  plunge  into  the  gray, 
universal  thicket,   than  I  would  find  myself  as 


A  FOREWORD  xv 

completely  alone  as  if  five  hundred  instead  of  only 
five  miles  separated  me  from  the  valley  and  river. 
So  wild  and  solitary  and  remote  seemed  that  gray 
waste,  stretching  away  into  infinitude,  a  waste 
untrodden  by  man,  and  where  the  wild  animals 
are  so  few  that  they  have  made  no  discoverable 
path  in  the  wilderness  of  thorns.  .  .  .  Not  once 
nor  twice  nor  thrice,  but  day  after  day  I  returned 
to  this  solitude,  going  to  it  in  the  morning  as  if  to 
attend  a  festival,  and  leaving  it  only  when  hunger 
and  thirst  and  the  westering  sun  compelled  me. 
And  yet  I  had  no  object  in  going, — no  motive 
which  could  be  put  into  words;  for,  although  I 
carried  a  gun,  there  was  nothing  to  shoot, — the 
shooting  was  all  left  behind  in  the  valley.  .  .  . 
Sometimes  I  would  pass  a  whole  day  without 
seeing  one  mammal,  and  perhaps  not  more  than  a 
dozen  birds  of  any  size.  The  weather  at  that  time 
was  cheerless,  generally  with  a  gray  film  of  cloud 
spread  over  the  sky,  and  a  bleak  wind,  often  cold 
enough  to  make  my  bridle-hand  quite  numb.  .  .  . 
At  a  slow  pace,  which  would  have  seemed  intoler- 
able under  other  circumstances,  I  would  ride 
about  for  hours  together  at  a  stretch.  On  arriving 
at  a  hill,  I  would  slowly  ride  to  its  summit,  and 
stand  there  to  survey  the  prospect.  On  every  side 
it  stretched  away  in  great  undulations,  wild  and 
irregular.  How  gray  it  all  was!  Hardly  less  so 
near  at  hand  than  on  the  haze-wrapped  horizon 
where  the  hills  were  dim  and  the  outline  obscured 


xvi  A  FOREWORD 

by  distance.  Descending  from  my  outlook,  I 
would  take  up  my  aimless  wanderings  again,  and 
visit  other  elevations  to  gaze  on  the  same  landscape 
from  another  point;  and  so  on  for  hours.  And  at 
noon  I  would  dismount,  and  sit  or  lie  on  my  folded 
poncho  for  an  hour  or  longer.  One  day  in  these 
rambles  I  discovered  a  small  grove  composed  of 
twenty  or  thirty  trees,  growing  at  a  convenient 
distance  apart,  that  had  evidently  been  resorted 
to  by  a  herd  of  deer,  or  other  wild  animals.  This 
grove  was  on  a  hill,  differing  in  shape  from  other 
hills  in  its  neighborhood ;  and,  after  a  time,  I  made 
a  point  of  finding  and  using  it  as  a  resting-place 
every  day  at  noon.  I  did  not  ask  myself  why  I 
made  choice  of  that  one  spot,  sometimes  going  out 
of  my  way  to  sit  there,  instead  of  sitting  down 
under  any  one  of  the  millions  of  trees  and  bushes 
on  any  other  hillside.  I  thought  nothing  about 
it,  but  acted  unconsciously.  Only  afterward  it 
seemed  to  me  that,  after  having  rested  there  once, 
each  time  I  wished  to  rest  again,  the  wish  came 
associated  with  the  image  of  that  particular  clump 
of  trees,  with  polished  stems  and  clean  bed  of  sand 
beneath;  and  in  a  short  time  I  formed  a  habit  of 
returning,  animal  like,  to  repose  at  that  same  spot. 
It  was,  perhaps,  a  mistake  to  say  that  I  would 
sit  down  and  rest,  since  I  was  never  tired ;  and  yet, 
without  being  tired,  that  noonday  pause,  during 
which  I  sat  for  an  hour  without  moving,  was 
strangely  grateful.     All  day  there  would  be  no 


A  FOKEWORD  xvii 

sound,  not  even  the  rustling  of  a  leaf.  One  day, 
while  listening  to  the  silence,  it  occurred  to  my 
mind  to  wonder  what  the  effect  would  be  if  I  were 
to  shout  aloud.  This  seemed  at  the  time  a  horrible 
suggestion,  which  almost  made  me  shudder.  But 
during  those  solitary  days  it  was  a  rare  thing  for 
any  thought  to  cross  my  mind.  In  the  state  of 
mind  I  was  in,  thought  had  become  impossible. 
My  state  was  one  of  suspense  and  watchfulness; 
yet  I  had  no  expectation  of  meeting  an  adventure, 
and  felt  as  free  from  apprehension  as  I  feel  now 
while  sitting  in  a  room  in  London.  The  state 
seemed  familiar  rather  than  strange,  and  accom- 
panied by  a  strong  feeling  of  elation ;  and  I  did  not 
know  that  something  had  come  between  me  and 
my  intellect  until  I  returned  to  my  former  self, — 
to  thinking,  and  the  old  insipid  existence. 

I  had  undoubtedly  gone  back;  and  that  state  of 
intense  watchfulness,  or  alertness,  rather,  with 
suspension  of  the  higher  intellectual  faculties, 
represented  the  mental  state  of  the  pure  savage. 
He  thinks  little,  reasons  little,  having  a  surer  guide 
in  his  mere  sensory  perceptions.  He  is  in  perfect 
harmony  with  nature,  and  is  nearly  on  a  level, 
mentally,  with  the  wild  animals  he  preys  on,  and 
which  in  their  turn  sometimes  prey  on  him. 

"For  the  spectator,  such  hours  as  Mr.  Hudson 
writes  of  form  a  mere  tale  of  emptiness,  in  which 
nothing  happens,  nothing  is  gained,  and  there  is 


xviii  A  FOREWORD 

nothing  to  describe.  They  are  meaningless  and 
vacant  tracts  of  time.  To  him  who  feels  their 
inner  secret,  they  tingle  with  an  importance  that 
unutterably  vouches  for  itself." 

Unlike  Hudson's  other  essays  in  fiction,  A 
Crystal  Age  is  without  a  local  habitation.  In 
outward  form  it  is  a  dream,  a  fairy  story,  if  you 
will.  But  it  has  the  same  poignant  human  interest 
that  glows  in  The  Purple  Land  and  Green  Mansions. 
Apparently,  even  when  he  plans  to  entertain  us 
with  the  whimsicalities,  antics,  and  adventures 
of  ideal  creatures,  Hudson  cannot  help  endowing 
them,  phantoms  though  they  are,  with  the  flesh 
and  blood  of  humanity.  It  is  the  patriarchal  form 
of  government  that  he  portrays  here,  something 
absolutely  different,  however,  from  dream  or 
theory  suggested  by  sociologist  or  poet.  It  is  the 
epic  of  forest  life,  and  the  rich  and  varied  colors 
that  compose  the  picture  could  be  found  only  on 
Hudson's  palette.  And  what  a  mingling  of  the 
humorous,  the  simple,  and  the  heroic  there  is  on 
this  canvas  that  presents  the  magic  House  of 
Coradine!  Yoletta,  Edra,  Isarte,  Chastel — the 
haunting  loveliness  of  these  women  is  like  the 
breath  from  some  dew-spangled  garden  of  wild- 
flowers,  inspiriting,  unforgettable.     The  story  in 


A  FOREWORD  xix 

which  they  play  their  part  has  a  sinuous  grace,  a 
subtlety  of  emotion  that  places  it  in  a  realm  of  its 
own  in  the  world  of  romance.  Not  even  Meredith's 
women  are  so  appealing,  so  utterly  beautiful  as 
Hudson's.  Here,  too,  there  is  a  picture  of  mother- 
hood such  as  no  poet  ever  before  attempted;  an 
analysis  of  passion  that  illuminates  certain  hidden 
penetralia  of  the  human  mind;  suggestions  of  a 
new  music,  a  new  art,  tantalizing  with  the  rich 
possibilities  that  they  offer.  And  the  wonder  of 
it  is  that  this  fairyland  of  gracious  beings,  this 
narrative  of  marvels  that  could  never  be,  save  in 
the  poet's  mind,  is  made  absolutely  real.  It  lives 
and  becomes  a  part  of  the  reader's  own  life.  But 
after  all,  the  vitality  of  The  Crystal  Age,  the  realism, 
the  humor,  the  pathos  of  it,  is  not  to  be  won- 
dered at.  It  is  a  dream,  a  fairy  thing,  indeed — 
but  it  is  a  dream  of  one  of  the  master-writers  of  the 
age,  a  man  whose  slightest  creations  are  so  steeped 
in  the  truth  and  beauty  of  Nature  that  his  place 
in  the  forefront  of  imaginative  literature  is  assured, 
and  is  even  now  being  accorded  him. 

Clifford  Smyth. 

New  York,  August  10,  191 6. 


A  CRYSTAL  AGE 


I  do  not  quite  know  how  it  happened,  my 
recollection  of  the  whole  matter  being  in  a 
somewhat  clouded  condition.  I  fancy  I  had 
gone  somewhere  on  a  botanizing  expedition, 
but  whether  at  home  or  abroad  I  don't  know. 
At  all  events,  I  remember  that  I  had  taken 
up  the  study  of  plants  with  a  good  deal  of 
enthusiasm,  and  that  while  hunting  for  some 
variety  in  the  mountains  I  sat  down  to  rest 
on  the  edge  of  a  ravine.  Perhaps  it  was  on 
the  ledge  of  an  overhanging  rock;  anyhow, 
if  I  remember  rightly,  the  ground  gave  way 
all  about  me,  precipitating  me  below.  The 
fall  was  a  very  considerable  one — probably 
thirty    or    forty    feet,    or    more,    and    I    was 


2  A  CRYSTAL  AGE 

rendered  unconscious.  How  long  I  lay  there 
under  the  heap  of  earth  and  stones  carried 
down  in  my  fall  it  is  impossible  to  say: 
perhaps  a  long  time;  but  at  last  I  came  to 
myself  and  struggled  up  from  the  debris,  like 
a  mole  coming  to  the  surface  of  the  earth  to 
feel  the  genial  sunshine  on  his  dim  eyeballs. 
I  found  myself  standing  (oddly  enough,  on  all 
fours)  in  an  immense  pit  created  by  the  over- 
throw of  a  gigantic  dead  tree  with  a  girth  of 
about  thirty  or  forty  feet.  The  tree  itself 
had  rolled  down  to  the  bottom  of  the  ravine; 
but  the  pit  in  which  it  had  left  the  huge  stumps 
of  severed  roots  was,  I  found,  situated  in  a 
gentle  slope  at  the  top  of  the  bank!  How, 
then,  I  could  have  fallen  seemingly  so  far 
from  no  height  at  all,  puzzled  me  greatly:  it 
looked  as  if  the  solid  earth  had  been  indulging 
in  some  curious  transformation  pranks  during 
those  moments  or  minutes  of  insensibility. 
Another  singular  circumstance  was  that  I  had 
a  great  mass  of  small  fibrous  rootlets  tightly 
woven  about  my  whole  person,  so  that  I  was 
like  a  colossal  basket- worm  in  its  case,  or  a 
big  man-shaped   bottle   covered   with   wicker- 


A  CRYSTAL  AGE  3 

work.  It  appeared  as  if  the  roots  bad  grown 
round  me!  Luckily  they  were  quite  sapless 
and  brittle,  and  without  bothering  my  brains 
too  much  about  the  matter,  I  set  to  work  to 
rid  myself  of  them.  After  stripping  the  woody 
covering  off,  I  found  that  my  tourist  suit  of 
rough  Scotch  homespun  had  not  suffered  much 
harm,  although  the  cloth  exuded  a  damp, 
moldy  smell;  also  that  my  thick-soled 
climbing  boots  had  assumed  a  cracked  rusty 
appearance  as  if  I  had  been  engaged  in  some 
brick-field  operations;  while  my  felt  hat  was 
in  such  a  discolored  and  battered  condition 
that  I  felt  almost  ashamed  to  put  it  on  my 
head.  My  watch  was  gone;  perhaps  I  had 
not  been  wearing  it,  but  my  pocket-book  in 
which  I  had  my  money  was  safe  in  my  breast 
pocket. 

Glad  and  grateful  at  having  escaped  with 
unbroken  bones  from  such  a  dangerous  acci- 
dent, I  set  out  walking  along  the  edge  of  the 
ravine,  which  soon  broadened  to  a  valley  run- 
ning between  two  steep  hills;  and  then,  seeing 
water  at  the  bottom  and  feeling  very  dry,  I 
ran  down  the  slope  to  get  a  drink.    Lying  flat 


4  A  CRYSTAL  AGE 

on  my  chest  to  slake  my  thirst  animal  fashion, 
I  was  amazed  at  the  reflection  the  water  gave 
back  of  my  face :  it  was,  skin  and  hair,  thickly 
encrusted  with  clay  and  rootlets!  Having 
taken  a  long  drink,  I  threw  off  my  clothes  to 
have  a  bath;  and  after  splashing  about  for 
half  an  hour  managed  to  rid  my  skin  of  its 
accumulations  of  dirt.  While  drying  in  the 
wind  I  shook  the  loose  sand  and  clay  from 
my  garments,  then  dressed,  and,  feeling  greatly 
refreshed,  proceeded  on  my  walk. 

For  an  hour  or  so  I  followed  the  valley 
in  its  many  windings,  but,  failing  to  see  any 
dwelling-place,  I  ascended  a  hill  to  get  a  view 
of  the  surrounding  country.  The  prospect 
which  disclosed  itself  when  I  had  got  a  couple 
of  hundred  feet  above  the  surrounding  level, 
appeared  unfamiliar.  The  hills  among  which 
I  had  been  wandering  were  now  behind  me; 
before  me  spread  a  wide  rolling  country, 
beyond  which  rose  a  mountain  range  resembl- 
ing in  the  distance  blue  banked-up  clouds  with 
summits  and  peaks  of  pearly  whiteness.  Look- 
ing on  this  scene  I  could  hardly  refrain  from 
shouting    with   joy,    so    glad    did    the    sunlit 


A  CRYSTAL  AGE  5 

expanse  of  earth,  and  the  pure  exhilarating 
mountain  breeze,  make  me  feel.  The  season 
was  late  summer — that  was  plain  to  see;  the 
ground  was  moist,  as  if  from  recent  showers, 
and  the  earth  everywhere  had  that  intense 
living  greenness  with  which  it  reclothes  itself 
when  the  greater  heats  are  over;  but  the 
foliage  of  the  woods  was  already  beginning 
to  be  touched  here  and  there  with  the  yellow 
and  russet  hues  of  decay.  A  more  tranquil 
and  soul-satisfying  scene  could  not  be  imag- 
ined :  the  dear  old  mother  earth  was  looking  her 
very  best;  while  the  shifting  golden  sunlight, 
the  mysterious  haze  in  the  distance,  and  the 
glint  of  a  wide  stream  not  very  far  off,  seemed 
to  spiritualize  her  "happy  autumn  fields,"  and 
bring  them  into  a  closer  kinship  with  the  blue 
over-arching  sky.  There  was  one  large  house 
or  mansion  in  sight,  but  no  town,  nor  even 
a  hamlet,  and  not  one  solitary  spire.  In  vain 
I  scanned  the  horizon,  waiting  impatiently  to 
see  the  distant  puff  of  white  steam  from  some 
passing  engine.  This  troubled  me  not  a  little, 
for  I  had  no  idea  that  I  had  drifted  so  far  from 
civilization   in   my   search    for   specimens,    or 


6  A  CRYSTAL  AGE 

whatever  it  was  that  brought  me  to  this  pretty, 
primitive  wilderness.  Not  quite  a  wilderness, 
however,  for  there,  within  a  short  hour's  walk 
of  the  hill,  stood  the  one  great  stone  mansion, 
close  to  the  river  I  had  mentioned.  There 
were  also  horses  and  cows  in  sight,  and  a 
number  of  scattered  sheep  were  grazing  on 
the  hillside  beneath  me. 

Strange  to  relate,  I  met  with  a  little  mis- 
adventure on  account  of  the  sheep — an  animal 
which  one  is  accustomed  to  regard  as  of  a 
timid  and  inoffensive  nature.  When  I  set 
out  at  a  brisk  pace  to  walk  to  the  house  I 
have  spoken  of,  in  order  to  make  some 
inquiries  there,  a  few  of  the  sheep  that 
happened  to  be  near  began  to  bleat  loudly, 
as  if  alarmed,  and  by  and  by  they  came 
hurrying  after  me,  apparently  in  a  great 
state  of  excitement.  I  did  not  mind  them 
much,  but  presently  a  pair  of  horses,  attracted 
by  their  bleatings,  also  seemed  struck  at  my 
appearance,  and  came  at  a  swift  gallop  to 
within  twenty  yards  of  me.  They  were 
magnificent-looking  brutes,  evidently  a  pair 
of    well-groomed    carriage    horses,    for    their 


A  CRYSTAL  AGE  7 

coats,  which  were  of  a  fine  bronze  color, 
sparkled  wonderfully  in  the  sunshine.  In 
other  respects  they  were  very  unlike  carriage 
animals,  for  they  had  tails  reaching  to  the 
ground,  like  funeral  horses,  and  immense 
black  leonine  manes,  which  gave  them  a 
strikingly  bold  and  somewhat  formidable 
appearance.  For  some  moments  they  stood 
with  heads  erect,  gazing  fixedly  at  me,  and 
then  simultaneously  delivered  a  snort  of 
defiance  or  astonishment,  so  loud  and  sudden 
that  it  startled  me  like  the  report  of  a  gun. 
This  tremendous  equine  blast  brought  yet 
another  enemy  on  the  field  in  the  shape  of 
a  huge  milk-white  bull  with  long  horns:  a 
very  noble  kind  of  animal,  but  one  which 
I  always  prefer  to  admire  from  behind  a 
hedge,  or  at  a  distance  through  a  field-glass. 
Fortunately  his  wrathful  mutterings  gave  me 
timely  notice  of  his  approach,  and  without 
waiting  to  discover  his  intentions,  I  inconti- 
nently fled  down  the  slope  to  the  refuge  of 
a  grove  or  belt  of  trees  clothing  the  lower 
portion  of  the  hillside.  Spent  and  panting 
from   my   run,    I   embraced   a   big   tree,    and 


8  A  CRYSTAL  AGE 

turning  to  face  the  foe,  found  that  I  had  not 
been  followed:  sheep,  horses,  and  bull  were 
all  grouped  together  just  where  I  had  left 
them,  apparently  holding  a  consultation,  or 
comparing  notes. 

The  trees  where  I  had  sought  shelter  were 
old,  and  grew  here  and  there,  singly  or  in 
scattered  groups:  it  was  a  pretty  wilderness 
of  mingled  tree,  shrub  and  flower.  I  was 
surprised  to  find  here  some  very  large  and 
ancient-looking  fig-trees,  and  numbers  of 
wasps  and  flies  were  busy  feeding  on  a  few 
over-ripe  figs  on  the  higher  branches. 
Honey-bees  also  roamed  about  everywhere, 
extracting  sweets  from  the  autumn  bloom, 
and  filling  the  sunny  glades  with  a  soft, 
monotonous  murmur  of  sound.  Walking  on 
full  of  happy  thoughts  and  a  keen  sense  of 
the  sweetness  of  life  pervading  me,  I 
presently  noticed  that  a  multitude  of  small 
birds  were  gathering  about  me,  flitting 
through  the  trees  overhead  and  the  bushes 
on  either  hand,  but  always  keeping  near 
me,  apparently  as  much  excited  at  my 
presence  as  if  I  had  been  a  gigantic  owl,  or 


A  CRYSTAL  AGE  9 

some  such  unnatural  monster.     Their  increas- 
ing  numbers    and    incessant   excited   chirping 
and  chattering  at  first  served  to  amuse,   but 
in  the  end  began  to  irritate  me.     I  observed, 
too,  that  the  alarm  was  spreading,  and  that 
larger    birds,    usually    shy    of   men — pigeons, 
jays,    and    magpies,    I    fancied    they    were — 
now  began  to  make  their  appearance.     Could 
it  be,   thought  I   with   some  concern,    that   I 
had  wandered  into  some  uninhabited  wilder- 
ness,  to  cause  so  great  a  commotion  among 
the  little  feathered  people?     I  very  soon  dis- 
missed this  as  an  idle  thought,  for  one  does 
not  find  houses,  domestic  animals,  and  fruit- 
trees   in    desert   places.      No,    it    was   simply 
the  inherent  cantankerousness  of  little   birds 
which   caused   them   to  annoy  me.     Looking 
about  on  the  ground  for  something  to  throw 
at    them,    I    found    in    the    grass    a    freshly- 
fallen    walnut,    and,    breaking    the    shell,    I 
quickly   ate    the   contents.      Never   had    any- 
thing tasted  so  pleasant  to  me  before!     But 
it  had  a  curious  effect  on  me,   for,   whereas 
before  eating  it  I  had  not  felt  hungry,  I  now 
seemed  to  be  famishing,  and  began  excitedly 


io  A  CRYSTAL  AGE 

searching  about  for  more  nuts.  They  were 
lying  everywhere  in  the  greatest  abundance; 
for,  without  knowing  it,  I  had  been  walking 
through  a  grove  composed  in  large  part  of  old 
walnut-trees.  Nut  after  nut  was  picked  up 
and  eagerly  devoured,  and  I  must  have 
eaten  four  or  five  dozen  before  my  ravenous 
appetite  was  thoroughly  appeased.  During 
this  feast  I  had  paid  no  attention  to  the 
birds,  but  when  my  hunger  was  over  I 
began  again  to  feel  annoyed  at  their  trivial 
persecutions,  and  so  continued  to  gather  the 
fallen  nuts  to  throw  at  them.  It  amused 
and  piqued  me  at  the  same  time  to  see  how 
wide  of  the  mark  my  missiles  went.  I  could 
hardly  have  hit  a  haystack  at  a  distance  of 
ten  yards.  After  half  an  hour's  vigorous 
practice  my  right  hand  began  to  recover  its 
lost  cunning,  and  I  was  at  last  greatly  de- 
lighted when  one  of  my  nuts  went  hissing 
like  a  bullet  through  the  leaves,  not  further 
than  a  yard  from  the  wren,  or  whatever  the 
little  beggar  was,  I  had  aimed  at.  Their 
Impertinences  did  not  like  this  at  all;  they 
began    to    find    out    that    I    was    a    rather 


A  CRYSTAL  AGE  n 

dangerous  person  to  meddle  with:  their  ranks 
were  broken,  they  became  demoralized  and 
scattered,  in  all  directions,  and  I  was  finally 
left  master  of  the  field. 

"Dolt  that  I  am."  I  suddenly  exclaimed, 
"to  be  fooling  away  my  time  when  the  nearest 
railway  station  or  hotel  is  perhaps  twenty 
miles  away." 

I  hurried  on,  but  when  I  got  to  the  end 
of  the  grove,  on  the  green  sward  near  some 
laurel  and  juniper  bushes,  I  came  on  an 
excavation  apparently  just  made,  the  loose 
earth  which  had  been  dug  out  looking  quite 
fresh  and  moist.  The  hole  or  foss  was 
narrow,  about  five  feet  deep  and  seven  feet 
long,  and  looked,  I  imagined,  curiously  like 
a  grave.  A  few  yards  away  was  a  pile  of 
dry  brushwood,  and  some  faggots  bound 
together  with  ropes  of  straw,  all  apparently 
freshly  cut  from  the  neighboring  bushes. 
As  I  stood  there,  wondering  what  these 
things  meant,  I  happened  to  glance  away  in 
the  direction  of  the  house  where  I  intended 
to  call,  which  was  not  now  visible  owing  to 
an  intervening  grove  of  tall  trees,   and  was 


12  A  CRYSTAL  AGE 

surprised  to  discover  a  troop  of  about  fifteen 
persons  advancing  along  the  valley  in  my 
direction.  Before  them  marched  a  tall  white- 
bearded  old  man;  next  came  eight  men,  bear- 
ing a  platform  on  their  shoulders  with  some 
heavy  burden  resting  upon  it;  and  behind 
these  followed  the  others.  I  began  to  think 
that  they  were  actually  carrying  a  corpse, 
with  the  intention  of  giving  it  burial  in  that 
very  pit  beside  which  I  was  standing;  and, 
although  it  looked  most  unlike  a  funeral,  for 
no  person  in  the  procession  wore  black,  the 
thought  strengthened  to  a  conviction  when 
I  became  able  to  distinguish  a  recumbent, 
human-like  form  in  a  shroud-like  covering  on 
the  platform.  It  seemed  altogether  a  very  un- 
usual proceeding,  and  made  me  feel  extremely 
uncomfortable;  so  much  so  that  I  considered 
it  prudent  to  step  back  behind  the  bushes, 
where  I  could  watch  the  doings  of  the  pro- 
cessionists without  being  observed. 

Led  by  the  old  man — who  carried,  sus- 
pended by  thin  chains,  a  large  bronze  censer, 
or  brazier  rather,  which  sent  out  a  thin  con- 
tinuous wreath  of  smoke — they  came  straight 


A  CRYSTAL  AGE  13 

on  to  the  pit;  and  after  depositing  their  burden 
on  the  grass,  remained  standing  for  some 
minutes,  apparently  to  rest  after  their  walk, 
all  conversing  together,  but  in  subdued  tones, 
so  that  I  could  not  catch  their  words,  although 
standing  within  fifteen  yards  of  the  grave. 
The  uncofhned  corpse,  which  seemed  that  of 
a  full-grown  man,  was  covered  with  a  white 
cloth,  and  rested  on  a  thick  straw  mat,  pro- 
vided with  handles  along  the  sides.  On  these 
things,  however,  I  bestowed  but  a  hasty 
glance,  so  profoundly  absorbed  had  I  become 
in  watching  the  group  of  living  human  beings 
before  me;  for  they  were  certainly  utterly 
unlike  any  fellow-creatures  I  had  ever  en- 
countered before.  The  old  man  was  tall  and 
spare,  and  from  his  snowy- white  majestic  beard 
I  took  him  to  be  about  seventy  years  old;  but 
he  was  straight  as  an  arrow,  and  his  free 
movements  and  elastic  tread  were  those  of  a 
much  younger  man.  His  head  was  adorned 
with  a  dark  red  skull-cap,  and  he  wore  a 
robe  covering  the  whole  body  and  reaching 
to  the  ankles,  of  a  deep  yellow  or  rhubarb 
color;   but  his   long   wide   sleeves   under   his 


14  A  CRYSTAL  AGE 

robe  were  dark  red,  embroidered  with  yellow 
flowers.  The  other  men  had  no  covering  on 
their  heads,  and  their  luxuriant  hair,  worn  to 
the  shoulders,  was,  in  most  cases,  very  dark. 
Their  garments  were  also  made  in  a  different 
fashion,  and  consisted  of  a  kilt-like  dress, 
which  came  half-way  to  the  knees,  a  pale 
yellow  shirt  fitting  tight  to  the  skin,  and  over 
it  a  loose  sleeveless  vest.  The  entire  legs 
were  cased  in  stockings,  curious  in  pattern 
and  color.  The  women  wore  garments 
resembling  those  of  the  men,  but  the  tight- 
fitting  sleeves  reached  only  half-way  to  the 
elbow,  the  rest  of  the  arm  being  bare;  and 
the  outer  garment  was  all  in  one  piece, 
resembling  a  long  sleeveless  jacket,  reaching 
below  the  hips.  The  color  of  their  dresses 
varied,  but  in  most  cases  different  shades  of 
blue  and  subdued  yellow  predominated.  In 
all,  the  stockings  showed  deeper  and  richer 
shades  of  color  than  the  other  garments; 
and  in  their  curiously  segmented  appearance, 
and  in  the  harmonious  arrangement  of  the 
tints,  they  seemed  to  represent  the  skins  of 
pythons     and    other    beautifully    variegated 


A  CRYSTAL  AGE  15 

serpents.  All  wore  low  shoes  of  an  orange- 
brown  color,  fitting  closely  so  as  to  display 
the  shape  of  the  foot. 

From  the  moment  of  first  seeing  them  I  had 
had  no  doubt  about  the  sex  of  the  tall  old 
leader  of  the  procession,  his  shining  white 
beard  being  as  conspicuous  at  a  distance  as 
a  shield  or  a  banner;  but  looking  at  the 
others  I  was  at  first  puzzled  to  know  whether 
the  party  was  composed  of  men  or  women, 
or  of  both,  so  much  did  they  resemble  each 
other  in  height,  in  their  smooth  faces,  and 
in  the  length  of  their  hair.  On  a  closer 
inspection  I  noticed  the  difference  of  dress 
of  the  sexes;  also  that  the  men,  if  not 
sterner,  had  faces  at  all  events  less  mild  and 
soft  in  expression  than  the  women,  and  also 
a  slight  perceptible  down  on  the  cheeks  and 
upper  lip. 

After  a  first  hasty  survey  of  the  group  in 
general,  I  had  eyes  for  only  one  person  in 
it — a  fine  graceful  girl  about  fourteen  years 
old,  and  the  youngest  by  far  of  the  party. 
A  description  of  this  girl  will  give  some  idea, 
albeit   a   very   poor   one,    of   the    faces    and 


16  A  CRYSTAL  AGE 

general  appearance  of  this  strange  people  I 
had  stumbled  on.  Her  dress,  if  a  garment 
so  brief  can  be  called  a  dress,  showed  a  slaty- 
blue  pattern  on  a  straw-colored  ground, 
while  her  stockings  were  darker  shades  of 
the  same  colors.  Her  eyes,  at  the  distance 
I  stood  from  her,  appeared  black,  or  nearly 
black,  but  when  seen  closely  they  proved  to 
be  green — a  wonderfully  pure,  tender  sea- 
green;  and  the  others,  I  found,  had  eyes  of 
the  same  hue.  Her  hair  fell  to  her  shoulders; 
but  it  was  very  wavy  or  curly,  and  strayed 
in  small  tendril-like  tresses  over  her  neck, 
forehead  and  cheeks;  in  color  it  was  golden 
black — that  is,  black  in  shade,  but  when 
touched  with  sunlight  every  hair  became  a 
thread  of  shining  red-gold;  and  in  some 
lights  it  looked  like  raven-black  hair  powdered 
with  gold-dust.  As  to  her  features,  the  fore- 
head was  broader  and  lower,  the  nose  larger, 
and  the  lips  more  slender,  than  in  our  most 
beautiful  female  types.  The  color  was  also 
different,  the  delicately  molded  mouth  being 
purple-red  instead  of  the  approved  cherry  or 
coral  hue;  while  the  complexion  was  a  clear 


A  CRYSTAL  AGE  17 

dark,  and  the  color,  which  mantled  the  cheeks 
in  moments  of  excitement,  was  a  dim  or  dusky 
rather  than  a  rosy  red. 

The  exquisite  form  and  face  of  this  young 
girl,  from  the  first  moment  of  seeing  her, 
produced  a  very  deep  impression;  and  I 
continued  watching  her  every  movement  and 
gesture  with  an  intense,  even  a  passionate 
interest.  She  had  a  quantity  of  flowers  in 
her  hand;  but  these  sweet  emblems,  I 
observed,  were  all  gayly  colored,  which 
seemed  strange,  for  in  most  places  white 
flowers  are  used  in  funeral  ceremonies.  Some 
of  the  men  who  had  followed  the  body 
carried  in  their  hands  broad,  three-cornered 
bronze  shovels,  with  short  black  handles,  and 
these  they  had  dropped  upon  the  grass  on 
arriving  at  the  grave.  Presently  the  old 
man  stooped  and  drew  the  covering  back 
from  the  dead  one's  face — a  rigid,  marble- 
white  face  set  in  a  loose  mass  of  black 
hair.  The  others  gathered  round,  and  some 
standing,  others  kneeling,  bent  on  the  still 
countenance  before  them  a  long  earnest  gaze, 
as  if  taking  an  eternal  farewell  of  one  they 


18  A  CRYSTAL  AGE 

had  deeply  loved.  At  this  moment  the 
beautiful  girl  I  have  described  all  at  once 
threw  herself  with  a  sobbing  cry  on  her 
knees  before  the  corpse,  and,  stooping,  kissed 
the  face  with  passionate  grief.  "Oh,  my 
beloved,  must  we  now  leave  you  alone  for- 
ever!" she  cried  between  the  sobs  that 
shook  her  whole  frame.  "Oh,  my  love — my 
love — my  love,  will  you  come  back  to  us  no 
more !" 

The  others  all  appeared  deeply  affected  at 
her  grief,  and  presently  a  young  man  standing 
by  raised  her  from  the  ground  and  drew  her 
gently  against  his  side,  where  for  some  minutes 
she  continued  convulsively  weeping.  Some  of 
the  other  men  now  passed  ropes  through  the 
handles  of  the  straw  mat  on  which  the  corpse 
rested,  and  raising  it  from  the  platform  low- 
ered it  into  the  foss.  Each  person  in  turn  then 
advanced  and  dropped  some  flowers  into  the 
grave,  uttering  the  one  word  "Farewell"  as 
they  did  so;  after  which  the  loose  earth  was 
shoveled  in  with  the  bronze  implements. 
Over  the  mound  the  hurdle  on  which  the 
straw  mat  had  rested  was   then  placed,   the 


A  CRYSTAL  AGE  19 

dry  brushwood  and  faggots  heaped  over  it 
and  ignited  with  a  coal  from  the  brazier. 
White  smoke  and  crackling  flames  issued  anon 
from  the  pile,  and  in  a  few  moments  the  whole 
was  in  a  fierce  blaze. 

Standing  around  they  all  waited  in  silence 
until  the  fire  had  burnt  itself  out;  then  the 
old  man  advancing  stretched  his  arms  above 
the  white  and  still  smoking  ashes  and  cried 
in  a  loud  voice:  "Farewell  forever,  O  well 
beloved  son!  With  deep  sorrow  and  tears 
we  have  given  you  back  to  Earth;  but  not 
until  she  has  made  the  sweet  grass  and  flowers 
grow  again  on  this  spot,  scorched  and  made 
desolate  with  fire,  shall  our  hearts  be  healed 
of  their  wound  and  forget  their  grief." 


II 


The  thrilling,  pathetic  tone  in  which  these 
words  were  uttered  affected  me  not  a  little; 
and  when  the  ceremony  was  over  I  continued 
staring  vacantly  at  the  speaker,  ignorant  of 
the  fact  that  the  beautiful  young  girl  had  her 
wide-open,  startled  eyes  fixed  on  the  bush 
which,  I  vainly  imagined,  concealed  me  from 
view. 

All  at  once  she  cried  out :  "Oh,  father,  look 
there!  Who  is  that  strange-looking  man 
watching  us  from  behind  the  bushes?" 

They  all  turned,  and  then  I  felt  that  four- 
teen or  fifteen  pairs  of  very  keen  eyes  were  on 
me,  seeing  me  very  plainly  indeed,  for  in  my 
curiosity  and  excitement  I  had  come  out  from 
the  thicker  bushes  to  place  myself  behind  a 
ragged,  almost  leafless  shrub,  which  afforded 
the  merest  apology  for  a  shelter.     Putting  a 

20 


A  CRYSTAL  AGE  21 

bold  face  on  the  matter,  although  I  did  not 
feel  very  easy,  I  came  out  and  advanced  to 
them,  removing  my  battered  old  hat  on  the 
way,  and  bowing  repeatedly  to  the  assembled 
company.  My  courteous  salutation  was  not 
returned;  but  all,  with  increasing  astonishment 
pictured  on  their  faces,  continued  staring  at 
me  as  if  they  were  looking  on  some  grotesque 
apparition.  Thinking  it  best  to  give  an  ac- 
count of  myself  at  once,  and  to  apologize  for 
intruding  on  their  mysteries,  I  addressed  my- 
self to  the  old  man: 

"I  really  beg  your  pardon,"  I  said,  "for 
having  disturbed  you  at  such  an  inconvenient 
time,  and  while  you  are  engaged  in  these — 
these  solemn  rites;  but  I  assure  you,  sir,  it 
has  been  quite  accidental.  I  happened  to  be 
walking  here  when  I  saw  you  coming,  and 
thought  it  best  to  step  out  of  the  way  until — 
well,  until  the  funeral  was  over.  The  fact  is, 
I  met  with  a  serious  accident  in  the  mountains 
over  there.  I  fell  down  into  a  ravine,  and  a 
great  heap  of  earth  and  stones  fell  on  and 
stunned  me,  and  I  do  not  know  how  long  I 
lay   there   before   I   recovered   my   senses.      I 


22  A  CRYSTAL  AGE 

daresay  I  am  trespassing,  but  I  am  a  perfect 
stranger  here,  and  quite  lost,  and — and  perhaps 
a  little  confused  after  my  fall,  and  perhaps  you 
will  kindly  tell  me  where  to  go  to  get  some 
refreshment,  and  find  out  where  I  am." 

"Your  story  is  a  very  strange  one,"  said 
the  old  man  in  reply,  after  a  pause  of  con- 
siderable duration.  "That  you  are  a  perfect 
stranger  in  this  place  is  evident  from  your 
appearance,  your  uncouth  dress,  and  your  thick 
speech." 

His  words  made  me  blush  hotly,  although 
I  should  not  have  minded  his  very  personal 
remarks  much  if  that  beautiful  girl  had  not 
been  standing  there  listening  to  everything. 
My  uncouth  garments,  by  the  way,  were  made 
by  a  fashionable  West  End  tailor,  and  fitted 
me  perfectly,  although  just  now  they  were,  of 
course,  very  dirty.  It  was  also  a  surprise  to 
hear  that  I  had  a  thick  speech,  since  I  had 
always  been  considered  a  remarkably  clear 
speaker  and  good  singer,  and  had  frequently 
both  sung  and  recited  in  public,  at  amateur 
entertainments. 

After  a  distressing  interval  of  silence,  during 


A  CRYSTAL  AGE  23 

which  they  all  continued  regarding  me  with 
unabated  curiosity,  the  old  gentleman  con- 
descended to  address  me  again  and  asked  me 
my  name  and  country. 

"My  country,"  said  I,  with  the  natural  pride 
of  a  Briton,  "is  England,  and  my  name  is 
Smith." 

"No  such  country  is  known  to  me,"  he 
returned;  "nor  have  I  ever  heard  such  a 
name  as  yours." 

I  was  rather  taken  aback  at  his  words,  and 
yet  did  not  just  then  by  any  means  realize 
their  full  import.  I  was  thinking  only  about 
my  name;  for  without  having  penetrated  into 
any  perfectly  savage  country,  I  had  been  about 
the  world  a  great  deal  for  a  young  man,  visit- 
ing the  Colonies,  India,  Yokohama,  and  other 
distant  places,  and  I  had  never  yet  been  told 
that  the  name  of  Smith  was  an  unfamiliar  one. 

"I  hardly  know  what  to  say,"  I  returned, 
for  he  was  evidently  waiting  for  me  to  add 
something  more  to  what  I  had  stated.  "It 
rather  staggers  me  to  hear  that  my  name — 
well,  you  have  not  heard  of  me,  of  course, 
but  there  have  been  a  great  many  distinguished 


24  A  CRYSTAL  AGE 

men  of  the  same  name:  Sydney  Smith,  for 
instance,  and — and  several  others."  It  morti- 
fied me  just  then  to  find  that  I  had  forgotten 
all  the  other  distinguished  Smiths. 

He  shook  his  head,  and  continued  watching 
my  face. 

"Not  heard  of  them!"  I  exclaimed.  "Well, 
I  suppose  you  have  heard  of  some  of  my  great 
countrymen:  Beaconsfield,  Gladstone,  Darwin, 
Burne-Jones,  Ruskin,  Queen  Victoria,  Tenny- 
son, George  Eliot,  Herbert  Spencer,  General 
Gordon,  Lord  Randolph  Churchill " 

As  he  continued  to  shake  his  head  after  each 
name  I  at  length  paused. 

"Who  are  all  these  people  you  have  named  V 
he  asked. 

"They  are  all  great  and  illustrious  men  and 
women  who  have  a  world-wide  reputation," 
I  answered. 

"And  are  there  no  more  of  them — have  you 
told  me  the  names  of  all  the  great  people  you 
have  ever  known  or  heard  of?"  he  said,  with 
a  curious  smile. 

"No,  indeed,"  I  answered,  nettled  at  his 
words  and  manner.     "It  would  take  me  until 


A  CRYSTAL  AGE  25 

to-morrow  to  name  all  the  great  men  I  have 
ever  heard  of.     I  suppose  you  have  heard  the 
names    of    Napoleon,     Wellington,     Nelson, 
Dante,  Luther,  Calvin,  Bismarck,  Voltaire1?" 
He  still  shook  his  head. 
^Well,      then,"      I      continued,      "Homer, 
Socrates,    Alexander    the    Great,    Confucius, 
Zoroaster,  Plato,  Shakespeare."     Then,  grow- 
ing thoroughly  desperate,  I  added  in  a  burst: 
"Noah,    Moses,    Columbus,   Hannibal,   Adam 
and  Eve !" 

"I  am  quite  sure  that  I  have  never  heard 
of  any  of  these  names,"  he  answered,  still 
with  that  curious  smile.  "Nevertheless  I 
can  understand  your  surprise.  It  sometimes 
happens  that  the  mind,  owing  to  an  imperfect 
adjustment  of  its  faculties,  resembles  the  un- 
educated vision  in  its  method  of  judgment, 
regarding  the  things  which  are  near  as  great 
and  important,  and  those  further  away  as  less 
important,  according  to  their  distance.  In 
such  a  case  the  individuals  one  hears  about 
or  associates  with,  come  to  be  looked  upon  as 
the  great  and  illustrious  beings  of  the  world, 
and  all  men  in  all  places  are  expected  to  be 


26  A  CRYSTAL  AGE 

familiar  with  their  names.  But  come,  my 
children,  our  sorrowful  task  is  over,  let  us 
now  return  to  the  house.  Come  with  us, 
Smith,  and  you  shall  have  the  refreshment 
you  require." 

I  was,  of  course,  pleased  with  the  invitation, 
but  did  not  relish  being  addressed  as  "Smith," 
like  some  mere  laborer  or  other  common  per- 
son tramping  about  the  country. 

The  long  disconcerting  scrutiny  I  had  been 
subjected  to  had  naturally  made  me  very 
uncomfortable,  and  caused  me  to  drop  a  little 
behind  the  others  as  we  walked  towards  the 
house.  The  old  man,  however,  still  kept  at  my 
side;  but  whether  from  motives  of  courtesy, 
or  because  he  wished  to  badger  me  a  little 
more  about  my  uncouth  appearance  and 
defective  intellect,  I  was  not  sure.  I  was  not 
anxious  to  continue  the  conversation,  which 
had  not  proved  very  satisfactory;  moreover, 
the  beautiful  girl  I  have  already  mentioned  so 
frequently,  was  now  walking  just  before  me, 
hand  in  hand  with  the  young  man  who  had 
raised  her  from  the  ground.  I  was  absorbed 
in  admiration  of  her  graceful  figure,  and — shall 


A  CRYSTAL  AGE  27 

I  be  forgiven  for  mentioning  such  a  detail4? — 
her  exquisitely  rounded  legs  under  her  brief 
and  beautiful  garments.  To  my  mind  the 
garment  was  quite  long  enough.  Every  time 
I  spoke,  for  my  companion  still  maintained 
the  conversation  and  I  was  obliged  to  reply, 
she  hung  back  a  little  to  catch  my  words.  At 
such  times  she  would  also  turn  her  pretty  head 
partially  round  so  as  to  see  me:  then  her 
glances,  beginning  at  my  face,  would  wander 
down  to  my  legs,  and  her  lips  would  twitch 
and  curl  a  little,  seeming  to  express  disgust  and 
amusement  at  the  same  time.  I  was  beginning 
to  hate  my  legs,  or  rather  my  trousers,  for  I 
considered  that  under  them  I  had  as  good  a 
pair  of  calves  as  any  man  in  the  company. 

Presently  I  thought  of  something  to  say, 
something  very  simple,  which  my  dignified 
old  friend  would  be  able  to  answer  without 
intimating  that  he  considered  me  a  wild  man 
of  the  woods  or  an  escaped  lunatic. 

"Can  you  tell  me,"  I  said  pleasantly,  "what 
is  the  name  of  your  nearest  town  or  city1?  how 
far  it  is  from  this  place,  and  how  I  can  get 
there?' 


28  A  CRYSTAL  AGE 

At  this  question,  or  series  of  questions,  the 
young  girl  turned  quite  round,  and,  waiting 
until  I  was  even  with  her,  she  continued  her 
walk  at  my  side,  although  still  holding  her 
companion's  hand. 

The  old  man  looked  at  me  with  a  grave 
smile — that  smile  was  fast  becoming  intoler- 
able— and  said:  "Are  you  so  fond  of  honey, 
Smith?  You  shall  have  as  much  as  you 
require  without  disturbing  the  bees.  They 
are  now  taking  advantage  of  this  second  spring 
to  lay  by  a  sufficient  provision  before  winter 
sets  in." 

After  pondering  some  time  over  these 
enigmatical  words,  I  said:  "I  daresay  we  are 
at  cross  purposes  again.  I  mean,"  I  added 
hurriedly,  seeing  the  inquiring  look  on  his 
face,  "that  we  do  not  exactly  understand  each 
other,  for  the  subject  of  honey  was  not  in  my 
thoughts." 

"What,  then,  do  you  mean  by  a  city*?"  he 
asked. 

"What  do  I  mean?  Why,  a  city,  I  take 
it,  is  nothing  more  than  a  collection  or  con- 
geries of  houses — hundreds  and  thousands,  or 


A  CRYSTAL  AGE  2g 

hundreds  of  thousands  of  houses,  all  built 
close  together,  where  one  can  live  very 
comfortably  for  years  without  seeing  a  blade 
of  grass." 

"I  am  afraid,"  he  returned,  "that  the 
accident  you  met  with  in  the  mountains  must 
have  caused  some  injury  to  your  brain;  for 
I  cannot  in  any  other  way  account  for  these 
strange  fantasies." 

"Do  you  mean  seriously  to  tell  me,  sir,  that 
you  have  never  even  heard  of  the  existence 
of  a  city,  where  millions  of  human  beings  live 
crowded  together  in  a  small  space?    Of  course 
I  mean  a  small  space  comparatively;  for  in 
some  cities  you  might  walk  all  day  without 
Siting  into  the  fields;  and  a  city  like   that 
might   be   compared   to    a   bee-hive   so    large 
that  a  bee  might  %  in  a  straight  line  all  <fcy 
without  getting  out  of  it." 

It  struck  me  the  moment  I  finished  speaking 
that  this  comparison  was  not  quite  right  some* 
how;  but  he  did  not  ask  me  to  explain:  he 
had  evidently  ceased  to  pay  any  attention  to 
what  I  said.  The  girl  looked  at  me  with  an 
expression  of  pity,  not  to  say  contempt,  and 


30  A  CRYSTAL  AGE 

I  felt  at  the  same  time  ashamed  and  vexed. 
This  served  to  rouse  a  kind  of  dogged  spirit 
in  me,  and  I  returned  to  the  subject  once  more. 

"Surely,"  I  said,  "you  have  heard  of  such 
cities  as  Paris,  Vienna,  Rome,  Athens,  Babylon, 
Jerusalem*?" 

He  only  shook  his  head,  and  walked  on  in 
silence. 

"And  London!  London  is  the  capital  of 
England.  Why,"  I  exclaimed,  beginning  to 
see  light,  and  wondering  at  myself  for  not 
having  seen  it  sooner,  "you  are  at  present 
talking  to  me  in  the  English  language." 

"I  fail  to  understand  your  meaning,  and  am 
even  inclined  to  doubt  that  you  have  any," 
said  he,  a  little  ruffled.  "I  am  addressing 
you  in  the  language  of  human  beings — that 
is  all." 

"Well,  it  seems  awfully  puzzling,"  said  I; 
"but  I  hope  you  don't  think  I  have  been 
indulging  in — well,  tarradiddles."  Then,  see- 
ing that  I  was  making  matters  no  clearer,  I 
added:  "I  mean  that  I  have  not  been  telling 
untruths." 

"I    could    not    think    that,"    he    answered 


A  CRYSTAL  AGE  31 

sternly.  "It  would  indeed  be  a  clouded  mind 
which  could  mistake  mere  disordered  fancies 
for  willful  offenses  against  the  truth.  I  have 
no  doubt  that  when  you  have  recovered  from 
the  effects  of  your  late  accident  these  vain 
thoughts  and  imaginations  will  cease  to  trouble 
you." 

"And  in  the  meantime,  perhaps,  I  had  better 
say  as  little  as  possible,"  said  I,  with  consider- 
able temper.  "At  present  we  do  not  seem  able 
to  understand  each  other  at  all." 

"You  are  right,  we  do  not,"  he  said;  and 
then  added  with  a  grave  smile,  "although  I 
must  allow  that  this  last  remark  of  yours  is 
quite   intelligible." 

"I'm  glad  of  that,"  I  returned.  "It  is 
distressing  to  talk  and  not  to  be  understood;  it 
is  like  men  calling  to  each  other  in  a  high 
wind,  hearing  voices  but  not  able  to  distinguish 
words." 

"Again  I  understand  you,"  said  he  approv- 
ingly; while  the  beautiful  girl  bestowed  on  me 
the  coveted  reward  of  a  smile,  which  had  no 
pity  or  contempt  in  it. 

"I  think,"  I  continued,  determined  to  follow 


32  A  CRYSTAL  AGE 

up  this  new  train  of  ideas  on  which  I  had  so 
luckily  stumbled,  "that  we  are  not  so  far  apart 
in  mind  after  all.  About  some  things  we  stand 
quite  away  from  each  other,  like  the  widely 
diverging  branches  of  a  tree;  but,  like  the 
branches,  we  have  a  meeting-place,  and  this  is, 
I  fancy,  in  that  part  of  our  nature  where  our 
feelings  are.  My  accident  in  the  hills  has  not 
disarranged  that  part  of  me,  I  am  sure,  and  I 
can  give  you  an  instance.  A  little  while  ago 
when  I  was  standing  behind  the  bushes  watch- 
ing you  all,  I  saw  this  young  lady " 

Here  a  look  of  surprise  and  inquiry  from  the 
girl  warned  me  that  I  was  once  more  plunging 
into  obscurity. 

"When  I  saw  you,"  I  continued,  somewhat 
amused  at  her  manner,  "cast  yourself  on  the 
earth  to  kiss  the  cold  face  of  one  you  had  loved 
in  life,  I  felt  the  tears  of  sympathy  come  to  my 
own  eyes." 

"Oh,  how  strange!"  she  exclaimed,  flash- 
ing on  me  a  glance  from  her  green,  mysterious 
eyes;  and  then,  to  increase  my  wonder  and 
delight,  she  deliberately  placed  her  hand  in 
mine. 


A  CRYSTAL  AGE  33 

"And  yet  not  strange,"  said  the  old  man,  by 
way  of  comment  on  her  words. 

"It  seemed  strange  to  Yoletta  that  one 
so  unlike  us  outwardly  should  be  so  like  us 
in  heart,"  remarked  the  young  man  at  her 
side. 

There  was  something  about  this  speech 
which  I  did  not  altogether  like,  though  I  could 
not  detect  anything  like  sarcasm  in  the  tone  of 
the  speaker. 

"And  yet,"  continued  the  lovely  girl,  "you 
never  saw  him  living — never  heard  his  sweet 
voice,  which  still  seems  to  come  back  to  me 
like  a  melody  from  the  distance." 

"Was  he  your  father4?"  I  asked. 

The  question  seemed  to  surprise  her  very 
much.  "He  is  our  father,"  she  returned,  with 
a  glance  at  the  old  gentleman,  which  seemed 
strange,  for  he  certainly  looked  aged  enough 
to  be  her  great-grandfather. 

He  smiled  and  said:  "You  forget,  my 
daughter,  that  I  am  as  little  known  to  this 
stranger  to  our  country  as  all  the  great  and 
illustrious  personages  he  has  mentioned  are 
to  us." 


34  A  CRYSTAL  AGE 

At  this  point  I  began  to  lose  interest  in 
the  conversation.  It  was  enough  for  me  to 
feel  that  I  held  that  precious  hand  in  mine, 
and  presently  I  felt  tempted  to  administer  a 
gentle  squeeze.  She  looked  at  me  and  smiled, 
then  glanced  over  my  whole  person,  the 
survey  finishing  at  my  boots,  which  seemed  to 
have  a  disagreeable  fascination  for  her.  She 
shivered  slightly,  and  withdrew  her  hand  from 
mine,  and  in  my  heart  I  cursed  those  rusty, 
thick-soled  monstrosities  in  which  my  feet 
were  cased.  However,  we  were  all  on 
a  better  footing  now;  and  I  resolved  for 
the  future  to  avoid  all  dangerous  topics,  his- 
torical and  geographical,  and  confine  myself 
to  subjects  relating  to  the  emotional  side  of 
our  natures. 

At  the  end  our  way  to  the  house  was  over  a 
green  turf,  among  great  trees  as  in  a  park;  and 
as  there  was  no  road  or  path,  the  first  sight  of 
the  building  seen  near,  when  we  emerged  from 
the  trees,  came  as  a  surprise.  There  were  no 
gardens,  lawns,  inclosures  or  hedges  near  it, 
nor  cultivation  of  any  kind.  It  was  like  a 
wilderness,  and  the  house  produced  the  effect 


A  CRYSTAL  AGE  35 

of  a  noble  ruin.     It  was  a  hilly  stone  country 
where  masses  of  stone  cropped  out  here  and 
there    among    the    woods    and    on    the    green 
slopes,   and   it   appeared   that   the   house   had 
been  raised  on  the  natural  foundation  of  one 
of  these  rocks  standing  a  little  above  the  river 
that  flowed  behind  it.     The  stone  was  gray, 
tinged  with  red,  and  the  whole  rock,  covering 
an  acre  or  so  of  ground,  had  been  worn  or 
hewn  down   to  form  a  vast  platform  which 
stood  about  a  dozen  feet  above  the  surround- 
ing green  level.     The  sloping  and  buttressed 
sides  of  the  platform  were  clothed  with  ivy, 
wild    shrubs,    and    various    flowering    plants. 
Broad,    shallow   steps   led   up    to   the   house, 
which  was  all  of  the  same  material— reddish- 
gray    stone;     and    the    main    entrance     was 
beneath  a  lofty  portico,  the  sculptured  entab- 
lature   of    which    was    supported    by    sixteen 
huge   caryatides,    standing   on   round  massive 
pedestals.     The  building  was  not  high  as  a 
castle  or  cathedral;  it  was  a  dwelling-place, 
and  had  but  one  floor,  and  resembled  a  ruin 
to  my  eyes  because  of  the  extreme  antiquity 
of  its  appearance,  the  weather-worn  condition 


36  A  CRYSTAL  AGE 

and  massiveness  of  the  sculptured  surfaces,  and 
the  masses  of  ancient  ivy  covering  it  in  places. 
On  the  central  portion  of  the  building  rested 
a  great  dome-shaped  roof,  resembling  ground 
glass  of  a  pale  reddish  tint,  producing  the 
effect  of  a  cloud  resting  on  the  stony  summit 
of  a  hill. 

I  remained  standing  on  the  grass  about 
thirty  yards  from  the  first  steps  after  the 
others  had  gone  in,  all  but  the  old  gentleman, 
who  still  kept  with  me.  By-and-by,  with- 
drawing to  a  stone  bench  under  an  oak-tree, 
he  motioned  to  me  to  take  a  seat  by  his 
side.  He  said  nothing,  but  appeared  to  be 
quietly  enjoying  my  undisguised  surprise  and 
admiration. 

"A  noble  mansion!"  I  remarked  at  length 
to  my  venerable  host,  feeling,  Englishman- 
like, a  sudden  great  access  of  respect  towards 
the  owner  of  a  big  house.  Men  in  such  a 
position  can  afford  to  be  as  eccentric  as  they 
like,  even  to  the  wearing  of  Carnivalesque 
garments,  burying  their  friends  or  relations 
in  a  park,  and  shaking  their  heads  over 
such   names    as    Smith   or   Shakespeare.      "A 


A  CRYSTAL  AGE  37 

glorious  place!  It  must  have  cost  a  pot  of 
money,  and  taken  a  long  time  to  build." 

"What  you  mean  by  a  pot  of  money  I 
do  not  know,"  said  he.  "When  you  add 
a  long  time  to  build,  I  am  also  puzzled  to 
understand  you.  For  are  not  all  houses,  like 
the  forest  of  trees,  the  human  race,  the  world 
we  live  in,  eternal4?" 

"If  they  stand  forever  they  are  so  in  one 
sense,  I  suppose,"  I  answered,  beginning  to 
fear  that  I  had  already  unfortunately  broken 
the  rule  I  had  so  recently  laid  down  for  my 
own  guidance.  "But  the  trees  of  the  forest, 
to  which  you  compare  a  house,  spring  from 
seed,  do  they  not?  and  so  have  a  beginning. 
Their  end  also,  like  the  end  of  man,  is  to 
die  and  return  to  the  dust." 

"That  is  true,"  he  returned;  "it  is,  more- 
over, a  truth  which  I  do  not  now  hear  for  the 
first  time;  but  it  has  no  connection  with  the 
subject  we  are  discussing.  Men  pass  away, 
and  others  take  their  places.  Trees  also  decay, 
but  the  forest  does  not  die,  or  suffer  for  the 
loss  of  individual  trees;  is  it  not  the  same  with 
the  house  and  the  family  inhabiting  it,  which  is 


38  A  CRYSTAL  AGE 

one  with  the  house,  and  endures  forever,  albeit 
the  members  composing  it  must  all  in  time 
return  to  the  dust?" 

"Is  there  no  decay,  then,  of  the  materials 
composing  a  house1?" 

"Assuredly  there  is!  Even  the  hardest 
stone  is  worn  in  time  by  the  elements,  or 
by  the  footsteps  of  many  generations  of  men; 
but  the  stone  that  decays  is  removed,  and  the 
house  does  not  suffer." 

"I  have  never  looked  at  it  quite  in  this 
light  before,"  said  I.  "But  surely  we  can 
build  a  house  whenever  we  wish!" 

"Build  a  house  whenever  we  wish!"  he 
repeated,  with  that  astonished  look  which 
threatened  to  become  the  permanent  expres- 
sion of  his  face — so  long  as  he  had  me  to 
talk  with,  at  any  rate. 

"Yes,  or  pull  one  down  if  we  find  it  un- 
suitable  "      But  his   look   of  horror   here 

made  me  pause,  and  to  finish  the  sentence 
I  added:  "Of  course,  you  must  admit  that 
a  house  had  a  beginning?" 

"Yes;  and  so  had  the  forest,  the  mountain, 
the  human   race,   the   world  itself.      But   the 


A  CRYSTAL  AGE  39 

origin  of  all  these  things  is  covered  with 
the  mists  of  time." 

"Does  it  never  happen,  then,  that  a  house, 
however  substantially  built " 

"However  what!  But  never  mind;  you 
continue  to  speak  in  riddles.  Pray,  finish 
what  you  were  saying." 

"Does  it  never  happen  that  a  house  is 
overthrown  by  some  natural  force — by  floods, 
or  subsidence  of  the  earth,  or  is  destroyed 
by  lightning  or  nre<?" 

"No!"  he  answered,  with  such  tremendous 
emphasis  that  he  almost  made  me  jump  from 
my  seat.  "Are  you  alone  so  ignorant  of  these 
things  that  you  speak  of  building  and  of  pull- 
ing down  a  house*?" 

"Well,  I  fancied  I  knew  a  lot  of  things 
once,"  I  answered,  with  a  sigh.  "But  perhaps 
I  was  mistaken — people  often  are.  I  should 
like  to  hear  you  say  something  more  about 
all  these  things — I  mean  about  the  house  and 
the  family,  and  the  rest  of  it." 

"Are  you  not,  then,  able  to  read — have  you 
been  taught  absolutely  nothing*?" 

"Oh  yes,  certainly  I  can  read,"  I  answered, 


40  A  CRYSTAL  AGE 

joyfully  seizing  at  once  on  the  suggestion, 
which  seemed  to  open  a  simple,  pleasant  way 
of  escape  from  the  difficulty.  "I  am  by  no 
means  a  studious  person;  perhaps  I  am 
never  so  happy  as  when  I  have  nothing  to 
read.  Nevertheless,  I  do  occasionally  look 
into  books,  and  greatly  appreciate  their 
gentle,  kindly  ways.  They  never  shut  them- 
selves up  with  a  sound  like  a  slap,  or  throw 
themselves  at  your  head  for  a  duffer,  but 
seem  silently  grateful  for  being  read,  even  by 
a  stupid  person,  and  teach  you  very  patiently, 
like  a  pretty,  meek-spirited  young  girl." 

"I  am  very  pleased  to  hear  it,"  said  he. 
"You  shall  read  and  learn  all  these  things 
for  yourself,  which  is  the  best  method.  Or 
perhaps  I  ought  rather  to  say,  you  shall  by 
reading  recall  them  to  your  mind,  for  it  is 
impossible  to  believe  that  it  has  always  been 
in  its  present  pitiable  condition.  I  can  only 
attribute  such  a  mental  state,  with  its  dis- 
ordered fancies  about  cities,  or  immense 
hives  of  human  beings,  and  other  things 
equally  frightful  to  contemplate,  and  its 
absolute  vacancy  concerning  ordinary  matters 


A  CRYSTAL  AGE  41 

of  knowledge,  to  the  grave  accident  you  met 
with  in  the  hills.  Doubtless  in  falling  your 
head  was  struck  and  injured  by  a  stone.  Let 
us  hope  that  you  will  soon  recover  possession 
of  your  memory  and  other  faculties.  And 
now  let  us  repair  to  the  eating-room,  for  it  is 
best  to  refresh  the  body  first,  and  the  mind 
afterwards." 


Ill 


We  ascended  the  steps,  and  passing  through 
the  portico  went  into  the  hall  by  what  seemed 
to  me  a  doorless  way.  It  was  not  really  so, 
as  I  discovered  later;  the  doors,  of  which 
there  were  several,  some  of  colored  glass, 
others  of  some  other  material,  were  simply 
thrust  back  into  receptacles  within  the  wall 
itself,  which  was  five  or  six  feet  thick.  The 
hall  was  the  noblest  I  had  ever  seen;  it  had 
a  stone  and  bronze  fireplace  some  twenty  or 
thirty  feet  long  on  one  side,  and  several  tall 
arched  doorways  on  the  other.  The  spaces 
between  the  doors  were  covered  with  sculpture, 
its  material  being  a  blue-gray  stone  combined 
or  inlaid  with  a  yellow  metal,  the  effect  being 
indescribably  rich.  The  floor  was  mosaic  of 
many  dark  colors,  but  with  no  definite  pattern, 
and  the  concave  roof  was  deep  red  in  color. 
Though  beautiful,   it  was  somewhat  somber, 

42 


A  CRYSTAL  AGE  43 

as  the  light  was  not  strong.  At  all  events, 
that  is  how  it  struck  me  at  first  on  coming 
in  from  the  bright  sunlight.  Nor,  it  appeared, 
was  I  alone  in  experiencing  such  a  feeling. 
As  soon  as  we  were  inside,  the  old  gentle- 
man, removing  his  cap  and  passing  his  thin 
fingers  through  his  white  hair,  looked  around 
him,  and  addressing  some  of  the  others,  who 
were  bringing  in  small  round  tables  and 
placing  them  about  the  hall,  said:  "No,  no; 
let  us  sup  this  evening  where  we  can  look 
at  the  sky." 

The  tables  were  immediately  taken  away. 

Now  some  of  those  who  were  in  the  hall  or 
who  came  in  with  the  tables  had  not  attended 
the  funeral,  and  these  were  all  astonished  on 
seeing  me.  They  did  not  stare  at  me,  but 
I,  of  course,  saw  the  expression  on  their  faces, 
and  noticed  that  the  others  who  had  made 
my  acquaintance  at  the  grave-side  whispered 
in  their  ears  to  explain  my  presence.  This 
made  me  extremely  uncomfortable,  and  it  was 
a  relief  when  they  began  to  go  out  again. 

One  of  the  men  was  seated  near  me;  he 
was  of   those   who   had   assisted   in   carrying 


44  A  CRYSTAL  AGE 

the  corpse,  and  he  now  turned  to  me  and 
remarked:  "You  have  been  a  long  time  in 
the  open  air,  and  probably  feel  the  change 
as  much  as  we  do." 

I  assented,  and  he  rose  and  walked  away 
to  the  far  end  of  the  hall,  where  a  great 
door  stood  facing  the  one  by  which  we  had 
entered.  From  the  spot  where  I  was — a 
distance  of  forty  or  fifty  feet,  perhaps — this 
door  appeared  to  be  of  polished  slate  of  a 
very  dark  gray,  its  surface  ornamented  with 
very  large  horse-chestnut  leaves  of  brass  or 
copper,  or  both,  for  they  varied  in  shade 
from  bright  yellow  to  deepest  copper-red.  It 
was  a  double  door  with  agate  handles,  and, 
first  pressing  on  one  handle,  then  on  the 
other,  he  thrust  it  back  into  the  walls  on 
either  side,  revealing  a  new  thing  of  beauty 
to  my  eyes,  for  behind  the  vanished  door 
was  a  window,  the  sight  of  which  came 
suddenly  before  me  like  a  celestial  vision. 
Sunshine,  wind,  cloud  and  rain  had  evidently 
inspired  the  artist  who  designed  it,  but  I 
did  not  at  the  time  understand  the  meaning 
of    the    symbolic    figures    appearing    in    the 


A  CRYSTAL  AGE  45 

picture.  Below,  with  loosened  dark  golden- 
red  hair  and  amber-colored  garments  flutter- 
ing in  the  wind,  stood  a  graceful  female 
figure  on  the  summit  of  a  gray  rock;  over 
the  rock,  and  as  high  as  her  knees,  slanted 
the  thin  branches  of  some  mountain  shrub, 
the  strong  wind  even  now  stripping  them 
of  their  remaining  yellow  and  russet  leaves, 
whirling  them  aloft  and  away.  Round  the 
woman's  head  was  a  garland  of  ivy  leaves, 
and  she  was  gazing  aloft  with  expectant  face, 
stretching  up  her  arms,  as  if  to  implore  or 
receive  some  precious  gift  from  the  sky. 
Above,  against  the  slaty-gray  cloud-rack, 
four  exquisite  slender  girl-forms  appeared,  with 
loose  hair,  silver-gray  drapery  and  gauzy  wings 
as  of  ephemera?,  flying  in  pursuit  of  the  cloud. 
Each  carried  a  quantity  of  flowers,  shaped 
like  lilies,  in  her  dress,  held  up  with  the  left 
hand;  one  carried  red  lilies,  another  yellow, 
the  third  violet,  and  the  last  blue;  and  the 
gauzy  wings  and  drapery  of  each  was  also 
touched  in  places  with  the  same  hue  as  the 
flowers  she  carried.  Looking  back  in  their 
flight    they    were    all    with    the    disengaged 


46  A  CRYSTAL  AGE 

hand   throwing   down   lilies   to   the   standing 
figure. 

This  lovely  window  gave  a  fresh  charm  to 
the  whole  apartment,  while  the  sunlight  fall- 
ing through  it  served  also  to  reveal  other 
beauties  which  I  had  not  observed.  One 
that  quickly  drew  and  absorbed  my  attention 
was  a  piece  of  statuary  on  the  floor  at  some 
distance  from  me,  and  going  to  it  I  stood 
for  some  time  gazing  on  it  in  the  greatest 
delight.  It  was  a  statue  about  one-third  the 
size  of  life,  of  a  young  woman  seated  on  a 
white  bull  with  golden  horns.  She  had  a 
graceful  figure  and  beautiful  countenance;  the 
face,  arms  and  feet  were  alabaster,  the  flesh 
tinted,  but  with  colors  more  delicate  than  in 
nature.  On  her  arms  were  broad  golden 
armlets,  and  the  drapery,  a  long  flowing  robe, 
was  blue,  embroidered  with  yellow  flowers. 
A  stringed  instrument  rested  on  her  knee, 
and  she  was  represented  playing  and  singing. 
The  bull,  with  lowered  horns,  appeared  walk- 
ing; about  his  chest  hung  a  garland  of  flowers 
mingled  with  ears  of  yellow  corn,  oak,  ivy, 
and   various   other   leaves,   green   and   russet, 


A  CRYSTAL  AGE  47 

and  acoms  and  crimson  berries.  The  garland 
and  blue  dress  were  made  of  malachite,  lapis 
lazuli,  and  various  precious  stones. 

"Aha,  my  fair  Phoenician,  I  know  you 
well!"  thought  I  exultingly,  "though  I  never 
saw  you  before  with  a  harp  in  your  hand. 
But  were  you  not  gathering  flowers,  O 
lovely  daughter  of  Agenor,  when  that  celestial 
animal,  that  masquerading  god,  put  himself 
so  cunningly  in  your  way  to  be  admired  and 
caressed,  until  you  unsuspiciously  placed  your- 
self on  his  back?  That  explains  the  garland. 
I  shall  have  a  word  to  say  about  this  pretty 
thing  to  my  learned  and  very  superior  host." 

The  statue  stood  on  an  octagonal  pedestal 
of  a  highly  polished  slaty-gray  stone,  and 
on  each  of  its  eight  faces  was  a  picture  in 
which  one  human  figure  appeared.  Now, 
from  gazing  on  the  statue  itself  I  fell  to  con- 
templating one  of  these  pictures  with  a  very 
keen  interest,  for  the  figure,  I  recognized, 
was  a  portrait  of  the  beautiful  girl  Yoletta. 
The  picture  was  a  winter  landscape.  The 
earth  was  white,  not  with  snow,  but  with 
hoar  frost;  the  distant  trees,   clothed  by  the 


48  A  CRYSTAL  AGE 

frozen  moisture  as  if  with  a  feathery  foliage, 
looked  misty  against  the  whitey-blue  wintry 
sky.  In  the  foreground,  on  the  pale  frosted 
grass,  stood  the  girl,  in  a  dark  maroon  dress, 
with  silver  embroidery  on  the  bosom,  and  a 
dark  red  cap  on  her  head.  Close  to  her 
drooped  the  slender  terminal  twigs  of  a  tree, 
sparkling  with  rime  and  icicle,  and  on  the 
twigs  were  several  small  snow-white  birds, 
hopping  and  fluttering  down  towards  her  out- 
stretched hand;  while  she  gazed  up  at  them 
with  flushed  cheeks,  and  lips  parting  with  a 
bright,  joyous  smile. 

Presently,  while  I  stood  admiring  this  most 
lovely  work,  the  young  man  I  have  mentioned 
as  having  raised  Yoletta  from  the  ground  at 
the  grave  came  to  my  side  and  remarked, 
smiling:     "You  have  noticed  the  resemblance." 

"Yes,  indeed,"  I  returned;  "she  is  painted 
to  the  life." 

"This  is  not  Yoletta's  portrait,"  he  replied, 
"though  it  is  very  like  her;"  and  then,  when 
I  looked  at  him  incredulously,  he  pointed  to 
some  letters  under  the  picture,  saying:  "Do 
you  not  see  the  name  and  date?" 


A  CRYSTAL  AGE  49 

Finding  that  I  could  not  read  the  words,  I 
hazarded  the  remark  that  it  was  Yoletta's 
mother,  perhaps. 

"This  portrait  was  painted  four  centuries 
ago,"  he  said,  with  surprise  in  his  accent; 
and  then  he  turned  aside,  thinking  me,  per- 
haps, a  rather  dull  and  ignorant  person. 

I  did  not  want  him  to  go  away  with  that 
impression,  and  remarked,  pointing  to  the 
statue  I  have  spoken  of:  "I  fancy  I  know 
very  well  who  that  is — that  is  Europa." 

"Europa?  That  is  a  name  I  never  heard; 
I  doubt  that  any  one  in  the  house  ever  bore 
it."  Then,  with  a  half-puzzled  smile,  he 
added:  "How  could  you  possibly  know  unless 
you  were  told4?  No,  that  is  Mistrelde.  It 
was  formerly  the  custom  of  the  house  for  the 
Mother  to  ride  on  a  white  bull  at  the  harvest 
festival.    Mistrelde  was  the  last  to  observe  it." 

"Oh,  I  see,"  I  returned  lamely,  though  I 
didn't  see  at  all.  The  indifferent  way  in 
which  he  spoke  of  centuries  in  connection 
with  this  brilliant  and  apparently  fresh-painted 
picture  rather  took  me  aback. 

Presently  he  condescended  to  say  something 


50  A  CRYSTAL  AGE 

more.  Pointing  to  the  marks  or  characters 
which  I  could  not  read,  he  said:  "You  have 
seen  the  name  of  Yoletta  here,  and  that  and 
the  resemblance  misled  you.  You  must  know 
that  there  has  always  been  a  Yoletta  in  this 
house.  This  was  the  daughter  of  Mistrelde, 
the  Mother,  who  died  young  and  left  but  eight 
children;  and  when  this  work  was  made  their 
portraits  were  placed  on  the  eight  faces  of  the 
pedestal." 

"Thanks  for  telling  me,"  I  said,  wondering 
if  it  was  all  true,  or  only  a  fantastic  romance. 

He  then  motioned  me  to  follow  him,  and  we 
quitted  that  room  where  it  had  been  decided 
that  we  were  not  to  sup. 


IV 


We  came  to  a  large  portico-like  place  open 
on  three  sides  to  the  air,  the  roof  being 
supported  by  slender  columns.  We  were 
now  on  the  opposite  side  of  the  house  and 
looked  upon  the  river,  which  was  not  more 
than  a  couple  of  hundred  yards  from  the 
terrace  or  platform  on  which  it  stood.  The 
ground  here  sloped  rapidly  to  the  banks,  and, 
like  that  in  the  front,  was  a  wilderness  with 
rock  and  patches  of  tall  fern  and  thickets  of 
thorn  and  bramble,  with  a  few  trees  of  great 
size.  Nor  was  wild  life  wanting  in  this 
natural  park;  some  deer  were  feeding  near 
the  bank,  while  on  the  water  numbers  of 
wild  duck  and  other  water-fowl  were  disport- 
ing themselves,  splashing  and  flapping  over 
the  surface  and  uttering  shrill  cries. 

The    people    of    the    house    were    already 
assembled,  standing  and  sitting  by  the  small 

51 


52  A  CRYSTAL  AGE 

tables.  There  was  a  lively  hum  of  conversa- 
tion, which  ceased  on  my  entrance;  then  those 
who  were  sitting  stood  up  and  the  whole 
company  fixed  its  eyes  on  me,  which  was 
rather  disconcerting. 

The  old  gentleman,  standing  in  the  midst  of 
the  people,  now  bent  on  me  a  long,  scrutinizing 
gaze;  he  appeared  to  be  waiting  for  me  to 
speak,  and,  finding  that  I  remained  silent,  he 
finally  addressed  me  with  solemnity.  "Smith," 
he  said — and  I  did  not  like  it — "the  meeting 
with  you  to-day  was  to  me  and  to  all  of  us  a 
very  strange  experience:  I  little  thought  that 
an  even  stranger  one  awaited  me,  that  before 
you  break  bread  in  this  house  in  which  you 
have  found  shelter,  I  should  have  to  remind 
you  that  you  are  now  in  a  house." 

"Yes,  I  know  I  am,"  I  said,  and  then  added : 
"I'm  sure,  sir,  I  appreciate  your  kindness  in 
bringing  me  here." 

He  had  perhaps  expected  something  more 
or  something  entirely  different  from  me,  as 
he  continued  standing  with  his  eyes  fixed  on 
me.  Then  with  a  sigh,  and  looking  round 
him,    he    said    in   a   dissatisfied    tone:      "My 


A  CRYSTAL  AGE  53 

children,  let  us  begin,  and  for  the  present  put 
out  of  our  minds  this  matter  which  has  been 
troubling  us." 

He  then  motioned  me  to  a  seat  at  his  own 
table,  where  I  was  pleased  to  have  a  place 
since  the  lovely  Yoletta  was  also  there. 

I  am  not  particular  about  what  I  eat,  as  with 
me  good  digestion  waits  on  appetite,  and  so 
long  as  I  get  a  bellyful — to  use  a  good  old 
English  word — I  am  satisfied.  On  this 
particular  occasion,  with  or  without  a  pretty 
girl  at  the  table,  I  could  have  consumed 
a  haggis — that  greatest  abomination  ever 
invented  by  flesh-eating  barbarians — I  was 
so  desperately  hungry.  It  was  therefore  a 
disappointment  when  nothing  more  substantial 
than  a  plate  of  whitey-green,  crisp-looking 
stuff  resembling  endive,  was  placed  before  me 
by  one  of  the  picturesque  handmaidens.  It 
was  cold  and  somewhat  bitter  to  the  taste, 
but  hunger  compelled  me  to  eat  it  even  to 
the  last  green  leaf;  then,  when  I  began  to 
wonder  if  it  would  be  right  to  ask  for  more, 
to  my  great  relief  other  more  succulent  dishes 
followed,    composed     of     various     vegetables. 


54  A  CRYSTAL  AGE 

We  also  had  some  pleasant  drinks,  made,  I 
suppose,  from  the  juices  of  fruits,  but  the 
delicious  alcoholic  sting  was  not  in  them. 
We  had  fruits,  too,  of  unfamiliar  flavors,  and 
a  confection  of  crushed  nuts  and  honey. 

We  sat  at  table — or  tables — a  long  time, 
and  the  meal  was  enlivened  with  conversation; 
for  all  now  appeared  in  a  cheerful  frame  of 
mind,  notwithstanding  the  melancholy  event 
which  had  occupied  them  during  the  day.  It 
was,  in  fact,  a  kind  of  supper,  and  the  one 
great  meal  of  the  day;  the  only  other  meals 
being  a  breakfast,  and  at  noon  a  crust  of  brown 
bread,  a  handful  of  dried  fruit,  and  drink  of 
milk. 

At  the  conclusion  of  the  repast,  during  which 
I  had  been  too  much  occupied  to  take  notice 
of  everything  that  passed,  I  observed  that  a 
number  of  small  birds  had  flown  in,  and  were 
briskly  hopping  over  the  floor  and  tables,  also 
perching  quite  fearlessly  on  the  heads  or 
shoulders  of  the  company,  and  that  they  were 
being  fed  with  the  fragments.  I  took  them 
to  be  sparrows  and  things  of  that  kind,  but 
they  did  not  look  altogether  familiar  to  me. 


A  CRYSTAL  AGE  55 

One  little  fellow,  most  lively  in  his  motions, 
was  remarkably  like  my  old  friend  the  robin, 
only  the  bosom  was  more  vivid,  running 
almost  into  orange,  and  the  wings  and  tail 
were  tipped  with  the  same  hue,  giving  it 
quite  a  distinguished  appearance.  Another 
small  olive-green  bird,  which  I  at  first  took 
for  a  green  linnet,  was  even  prettier,  the 
throat  and  bosom  being  of  a  most  delicate 
buff,  crossed  with  a  belt  of  velvet  black. 
The  bird  that  really  seemed  most  like  a 
common  sparrow  was  chestnut,  with  a  white 
throat  and  mouse-colored  wings  and  tail. 
These  pretty  little  pensioners  systematically 
avoided  my  neighborhood,  although  I 
tempted  them  with  crumbs  and  fruit;  only 
one  flew  on  to  my  table,  but  had  no  sooner 
done  so  than  it  darted  away  again,  and  out 
of  the  room,  as  if  greatly  alarmed.  I  caught 
the  pretty  girl's  eye  just  then,  and  having 
finished  eating,  and  being  anxious  to  join  the 
conversation,  for  I  hate  to  sit  silent  when 
others  are  talking,  I  remarked  that  it  was 
strange  the  little  birds  so  persistently 
avoided  me. 


56  A  CRYSTAL  AGE 

"Oh  no,  not  at  all  strange,"  she  replied, 
with  surprising  readiness,  showing  that  she 
too  had  noticed  it.  "They  are  frightened  at 
your  appearance." 

"I  must  indeed  appear  strange  to  them," 
said  I,  with  some  bitterness,  and  recalling  the 
adventures  of  the  morning.  "It  is  to  me  a 
new  and  very  painful  experience  to  walk  about 
the  world  frightening  men,  cattle,  and  birds; 
yet  I  suppose  it  is  entirely  due  to  the  clothes 
I  am  wearing — and  the  boots.  I  wish  some 
kind  person  would  suggest  a  remedy  for  this 
state  of  things;  for  just  now  my  greatest  desire 
is  to  be  dressed  in  accordance  with  the  fashion." 

"Allow  me  to  interrupt  you  for  one  moment, 
Smith,"  said  the  old  gentleman,  who  had  been 
listening  attentively  to  my  words.  "We 
understood  what  you  said  so  well  on  this 
occasion  that  it  seems  a  pity  you  should 
suddenly  again  render  yourself  unintelligible. 
Can  you  explain  to  us  what  you  mean  by 
dressing  in  accordance  with  the  fashion4?" 

"My  meaning  is,  that  I  simply  desire  to 
dress  like  one  of  yourselves,  to  see  the  last 
of  these  uncouth  garments."    I  could  not  help 


A  CRYSTAL  AGE  57 

putting  a  little  vicious  emphasis  on  that  hateful 
word. 

He  inclined  his  head  and  said,  "Yes*?" 
Thus  encouraged,  I  dashed  boldly  into  the 
middle  of  the  matter;  for  now,  having  dined, 
albeit  without  wine,  I  was  inflamed  with  an 
intense  craving  to  see  myself  arrayed  in  their 
rich,  mysterious  dress.  "This  being  so,"  I 
continued,  "may  I  ask  you  if  it  is  in  your 
power  to  provide  me  with  the  necessary  gar- 
ments, so  that  I  may  cease  to  be  an  object  of 
aversion  and  offense  to  every  living  thing  and 
person,  myself  included'?" 

A  long  and  uncomfortable  silence  ensued, 
which  was  perhaps  not  strange,  considering 
the  nature  of  the  request.  That  I  had 
blundered  once  more  seemed  likely  enough, 
from  the  general  suspense  and  the  somewhat 
alarmed  expression  of  the  old  gentleman's 
countenance;  nevertheless,  my  motives  had 
been  good:  I  had  expressed  my  wish  in  that 
way  for  the  sake  of  peace  and  quietness,  and 
fearing  that  if  I  had  asked  to  be  directed  to 
the  nearest  clothing  establishment,  a  new  fit 
of  amazement  would  have  been  the  result. 


58  A  CRYSTAL  AGE 

Finding  the  silence  intolerable,  I  at  length 
ventured  to  remark  that  I  feared  he  had  not 
understood  me  to  the  end. 

"Perhaps  not,"  he  answered  gravely.  "Or, 
rather  let  me  say,  I  hope  not." 

"May  I  explain  my  meaning1?"  said  I, 
greatly  distressed. 

"Assuredly  you  may,"  he  replied  with  dig* 
nity.  "Only  before  you  speak,  let  me  put  this 
plain  question  to  you:  Do  you  ask  us  to  pro- 
vide you  with  garments — that  is  to  say,  to 
bestow  them  as  a  gift  on  you*?" 

"Certainly  not!"  I  exclaimed,  turning  crim- 
son with  shame  to  think  that  they  were  all 
taking  me  for  a  beggar.  "My  wish  is  to  obtain 
them  somehow  from  somebody,  since  I  cannot 
make  them  for  myself,  and  to  give  in  return 
their  full  value." 

I  had  no  sooner  spoken  than  I  greatly  feared 
that  I  had  made  matters  worse;  for  here  was 
I,  a  guest  in  the  house,  actually  offering  to 
purchase  clothing — ready-made  or  to  order — 
from  my  host,  who,  for  all  I  knew,  might  be 
one  of  the  aristocracy  of  the  country.  My 
fears,  however,  proved  quite  groundless. 


A  CRYSTAL  AGE  59 

"I  am  glad  to  hear  your  explanation,"  he 
answered,  "for  it  has  completely  removed  the 
unpleasant  impression  caused  by  your  former 
words.  What  can  you  do  in  return  for  the 
garments  you  are  anxious  to  possess*?  And 
here,  let  me  remark,  I  approve  highly  of  your 
wish  to  escape,  with  the  least  possible  delay, 
from  your  present  covering.  Do  you  wish 
to  confine  yourself  to  the  finishing  of  some 
work  in  a  particular  line — as  wood-carving, 
or  stone,  metal,  clay  or  glass  work;  or  in 
making  or  using  colors'?  or  have  you  only 
that  general  knowledge  of  the  various  arts 
which  would  enable  you  to  assist  the  more 
skilled  in  preparing  materials'?" 

"No,  I  am  not  an  artist,"  I  replied,  surprised 
at  his  question.  "All  I  can  do  is  to  buy  the 
clothes — to  pay  for  them  in  money." 

"What  do  you  mean  by  that?  What  is 
money?" 

"Surely "     I    began,    but    fortunately 

checked  myself  in  time,  for  I  had  meant  to 
suggest  that  he  was  pulling  my  leg.  But  it 
was  really  hard  to  believe  that  a  person  of 
his   years    did   not   know    what   money    was. 


60  A  CRYSTAL  AGE 

Besides,  I  could  not  answer  the  question, 
having  always  abhorred  the  study  of  political 
economy,  which  tells  you  all  about  it;  so  that 
I  had  never  learned  to  define  money,  but  only 
how  to  spend  it.  Presently  I  thought  the  best 
way  out  of  the  muddle  was  to  show  him  some, 
and  I  accordingly  pulled  out  my  big  leather 
book-purse  from  my  breast  pocket.  It  had  an 
ancient,  musty  smell,  like  everything  else  about 
me,  but  seemed  pretty  heavy  and  well  filled, 
and  I  proceeded  to  open  it  and  turn  the  con- 
tents on  the  table.  Eleven  bright  sovereigns 
and  three  half-crowns  or  florins,  I  forget  which, 
rolled  out;  then,  unfolding  the  papers,  I  dis- 
covered three  five-pound  Bank  of  England 
notes. 

"Surely  this  is  very  little  for  me  to  have 
about  me !"  said  I,  feeling  greatly  disappointed. 
"I  fancy  I  must  have  been  making  ducks  and 
drakes  of  a  lot  of  cash  before — before — well, 
before  I  was — I  don't  know  what,  or  when, 
or  where." 

Little  notice  was  taken  of  this  somewhat 
incoherent  speech,  for  all  were  now  gathering 
round  the  table,  examining  the  gold  and  notes 


A  CRYSTAL  AGE  61 

with  eager  curiosity.  At  length  the  old  gentle- 
man, pointing  to  the  gold  pieces,  said:  "What 
are  these?" 

"Sovereigns,"  I  answered,  not  a  little 
amused.  "Have  you  never  seen  any  like  them 
before?" 

"Never.  Let  me  examine  them  again.  Yes, 
these  eleven  are  of  gold.  They  are  all  marked 
alike,  on  one  side  with  a  roughly-executed  fig- 
ure of  a  woman's  head,  with  the  hair  gathered 
on  its  summit  in  a  kind  of  ball.  There  are  also 
other  things  on  them  which  I  do  not  under- 
stand." 

"Can  you  not  read  the  letters?"  I  asked. 

"No.  The  letters — if  these  marks  are  letters 
: — are  incomprehensible  to  me.  But  what  have 
these  small  pieces  of  metal  to  do  with  the  ques- 
tion of  your  garments?     You  puzzle  me." 

"Why,  everything.  These  pieces  of  metal, 
as  you  call  them,  are  money,  and  represent,  of 
course,  so  much  buying  power.  I  don't  know 
yet  what  your  currency  is,  and  whether  you 
have  the  dollar  or  the  rupee" — here  I  paused, 
seeing  that  he  did  not  follow  me.  "My  idea 
is  this,"  I  resumed,  and  coming  down  to  very 


62  A  CRYSTAL  AGE 

plain  speaking:  "I  can  give  one  of  these  five- 
pound  notes,  or  its  equivalent  in  gold,  if  you 
prefer  that — five  of  these  sovereigns,  I  mean — 
for  a  suit  of  clothes  such  as  you  all  wear." 

So  great  was  my  desire  to  possess  the  clothes 
that  I  was  about  to  double  the  offer,  which 
struck  me  as  poor,  and  add  that  I  would 
give  ten  sovereigns;  but  when  I  had  spoken 
he  dropped  the  piece  he  held  in  his  hand  upon 
the  table,  and  stared  fixedly  at  me,  assisted 
by  all  the  others.  Presently,  in  the  pro- 
found silence  which  ensued,  a  low,  silvery 
gurgling  became  audible,  as  of  some  merry 
mountain  burn — a  sweet,  warbling  sound, 
swelling  louder  by  degrees  until  it  ended  in 
a  long  ringing  peal  of  laughter. 

This  was  from  the  girl  Yoletta.  I  stared 
at  her,  surprised  at  her  unseasonable  levity; 
but  the  only  effect  of  my  doing  so  was  a 
general  explosion,  men  and  women  joining 
in  such  a  tempest  of  merriment  that  one 
might  have  imagined  they  had  just  heard  the 
most  wonderful  joke  ever  invented  since  man 
acquired  the  sense  of  the  ludicrous. 

The  old  gentleman  was  the  first  to  recover 


A  CRYSTAL  AGE  63 

a  decent  gravity,  although  it  was  plain  to  see 
that  he  struggled  severely  at  intervals  to  pre- 
vent a  relapse. 

"Smith,"  said  he,  "of  all  the  extraordinary 
delusions  you  appear  to  be  suffering  from,  this, 
that  you  can  have  garments  to  wear  in  return 
for  a  small  piece  of  paper,  or  for  a  few  bits  of 
this  metal,  is  the  most  astounding!  You 
cannot  exchange  these  trifles  for  clothes,  be- 
cause clothes  are  the  fruit  of  much  labor  of 
many  hands." 

"And  yet,  sir,  you  said  you  understood  me 
when  I  proposed  to  pay  for  the  things  I 
require,"  said  I,  in  an  aggrieved  tone.  "You 
seemed  even  to  approve  of  the  offer  I  made. 
How,  then,  am  I  to  pay  for  them  if  all  I  pos- 
sess is  not  considered  of  any  value4?" 

"All  you  possess!"  he  replied.  "Surely 
I  did  not  say  that!  Surely  you  possess  the 
strength  and  skill  common  to  all  men,  and 
can  acquire  anything  you  wish  by  the  labor 
of  your  hands." 

I  began  once  more  to  see  light,  although 
my  skill,  I  knew,  would  not  count  for  much. 
"Ah  yes,"  I  answered:   "to  go  back  to  that 


64  A  CRYSTAL  AGE 

subject,  I  do  not  know  anything  about  wood- 
carving  or  using  colors,  but  I  might  be  able 
to  do  something — some  work  of  a  simpler 
kind." 

"There  are  trees  to  be  felled,  land  to  be 
plowed,  and  many  other  things  to  be  done. 
If  you  will  do  these  things  some  one  else  will 
be  released  to  perform  works  of  skill;  and  as 
these  are  the  most  agreeable  to  the  worker, 
it  would  please  us  more  to  have  you  labor 
in  the  fields  than  in  the  workhouse." 

"I  am  strong,"  I  answered,  "and  will 
gladly  undertake  labor  of  the  kind  you 
speak  of.  There  is,  however,  one  difficulty. 
My  desire  is  to  change  these  clothes  for 
others  which  will  be  more  pleasing  to  the 
eye,  at  once;  but  the  work  I  shall  have  to 
do  in  return  will  not  be  finished  in  a  day. 
Perhaps  not  in — well,  several  days." 

"No,  of  course  not,"  said  he.  "A  year's 
labor  will  be  necessary  to  pay  for  the  garments 
you  require." 

This  staggered  me;  for  if  the  clothes  were 
given  to  me  at  the  beginning,  then  before  the 
end  of  the  year  they  would  be  worn  to  rags, 


A  CRYSTAL  AGE  65 

and  I  should  make  myself  a  slave  for  life.  I 
was  sorely  perplexed  in  mind,  and  pulled  about 
this  way  and  that  by  the  fear  of  incurring  a 
debt,  and  the  desire  to  see  myself  (and  to  be 
seen  by  Yoletta)  in  those  strangely  fascinat- 
ing garments.  That  I  had  a  decent  figure, 
and  was  not  a  bad-looking  young  fellow,  I 
was  pretty  sure;  and  the  hope  that  I  should 
be  able  to  create  an  impression  (favorable, 
I  mean)  on  the  heart  of  that  supremely 
beautiful  girl  was  very  strong  in  me.  At  all 
events,  by  closing  with  the  offer  I  should 
have  a  year  of  happiness  in  her  society,  and 
a  year  of  healthy  work  in  the  fields  could 
not  hurt  me,  or  interfere  much  with  my 
prospects.  Besides,  I  was  not  quite  sure 
that  my  prospects  were  really  worth  thinking 
about  just  now.  Certainly,  I  had  always 
lived  comfortably,  spending  money,  eating 
and  drinking  of  the  best,  and  dressing  well 
— that  is,  according  to  the  London  standard. 
And  there  was  my  dear  old  bachelor  Uncle 
Jack — John  Smith,  Member  of  Parliament 
for  Wormwood  Scrubbs.  That  is  to  say, 
ex-Member;   for,   being   a  Liberal   when   the 


66  A  CRYSTAL  AGE 

great  change  came  at  the  last  general 
election,  he  was  ignominiously  ousted  from 
his  seat,  the  Scrubbs  proving  at  the  finish 
a  bitter  place  to  him.  He  was  put  out  in 
more  ways  than  one,  and  tried  to  comfort 
himself  by  saying  that  there  would  soon  be 
another  dissolution — thinking  of  his  own, 
possibly,  being  an  old  man.  I  remembered 
that  I  had  rather  looked  forward  to  such  a 
contingency,  thinking  how  pleasant  it  would 
be  to  have  all  that  money,  and  cruise  about 
the  world  in  my  own  yacht,  enjoying  myself 
as  I  knew  how.  And  really  I  had  some 
reason  to  hope.  I  remember  he  used  to 
wind  up  the  talk  of  an  evening  when  I  dined 
with  him  (and  got  a  check)  by  saying:  "My 
boy,  you  have  talents,  if  you'd  only  use  'em." 
Where  were  those  talents  now?  Certainly 
they  had  not  made  me  shine  much  during  the 
last  few  hours. 

Now,  all  this  seemed  unsubstantial,  and  I 
remembered  these  things  dimly,  like  a  dream 
or  a  story  told  to  me  in  childhood;  and  some- 
times, when  recalling  the  past,  I  seemed  to 
be  thinking  about  ancient  history — Sesostris, 


A  CRYSTAL  AGE  67 

and  the  Babylonians  and  Assyrians,  and  that 
sort  of  thing.  And,  besides,  it  would  be  very 
hard  to  get  back  from  a  place  where  even  the 
name  of  London  was  unknown.  And  perhaps, 
if  I  ever  should  succeed  in  getting  back,  it 
would  only  be  to  encounter  a  second  Roger 
Tichborne  case,  or  to  be  confronted  with  the 
statute  of  limitations.  Anyhow,  a  year  could 
not  make  much  difference,  and  I  should  also 
keep  my  money,  which  seemed  an  advan- 
tage, though  it  wasn't  much.  I  looked  up: 
they  were  all  once  more  studying  the  coins 
and  notes,  and  exchanging  remarks  about 
them. 

"If  I  bind  myself  to  work  one  year,"  said 
I,  "shall  I  have  to  wait  until  the  end  of  that 
time  before  I  get  the  clothes'?" 

The  reply  to  this  question,  I  thought,  would 
settle  the  matter  one  way  or  the  other. 

"No,"  said  he.  "It  is  your  wish,  and  also 
ours,  that  you  should  be  differently  clothed 
at  once,  and  the  garments  you  require  would 
be  made  for  you  immediately." 

"Then,"  said  I,  taking  the  desperate  plunge, 
"I    should    like    to    have    them    as    soon    as 


68  A  CRYSTAL  AGE 

possible,  and  I  am  ready  to  commence  work 
at  once." 

"You  shall  commence  to-morrow  morning," 
he  answered,  smiling  at  my  impetuosity.  "The 
daughters  of  the  house,  whose  province  it  is 
to  make  these  things,  shall  also  suspend  other 
work  until  your  garments  are  finished.  And 
now,  my  son,  from  this  evening  you  are  one 
of  the  house  and  one  of  us,  and  the  things 
which  we  possess  you  also  possess  in  common 
with  us." 

I  rose  and  thanked  him.  He  too  rose, 
and,  after  looking  round  on  us  with  a  fatherly 
smile,  went  away  to  the  interior  of  the  house. 


When  he  was  gone,  and  Yoletta  had  followed, 
leaving  some  of  the  others  still  studying  those 
wretched   sovereigns,    I   sat   down   again   and 
rested  my  chin  on  my  hand;  for  I  was  now 
thinking — deeply:   thinking   on   the   terms   of 
the  agreement.     "I  daresay  I  have  succeeded 
in  making  a  precious  ass  of  myself,"  was  the 
mental    reflection    that   occurred    to   me — one 
I  had  not   infrequently  made,   and,    what   is 
more,    been    justified    in    making    on    former 
occasions.      Then,    remembering    that    I    had 
come  to  supper  with  an  extravagant  appetite, 
it  struck  me  that  my  host,  quietly  observant, 
had,  when  proposing  terms,  taken  into  account 
the  quantity  of  food  necessary  for  my  susten- 
ance.     I   regretted   too   late   that   I   had   not 
exercised    more     restraint;    but    the    hungry 
man    does    not    and    cannot    consider    conse- 
quences, else  a  certain  hairy  gentleman  who 

69 


70  A  CRYSTAL  AGE 

figures  in  ancient  history  had  never  lent  him- 
self to  that  nefarious  compact,  which  gave 
so  great  an  advantage  to  a  younger  but  sleek 
and  well-nourished  brother.  In  spite  of  all 
this,  I  felt  a  secret  satisfaction  in  the  thought 
of  the  clothes,  and  it  was  also  good  to  know 
that  the  nature  of  the  work  I  had  undertaken 
would  not  lower  my  status  in  the  house. 

Occupied  with  these  reflections,  I  had  failed 
to  observe  that  the  company  had  gradually 
been  drifting  away  until  but  one  person  was 
left  with  me — the  young  man  who  had  talked 
with  me  before.  On  his  invitation  I  now 
rose,  put  by  my  money,  and  followed  him. 
Returning  by  the  hall  we  went  through  a 
passage  and  entered  a  room  of  vast  extent, 
which  in  its  form  and  great  length  and  high 
arched  roof  was  like  the  nave  of  a  cathedral. 
And  yet  how  unlike  in  that  something  ethereal 
in  its  aspect,  as  of  a  nave  in  a  cloud  cathedral, 
its  far-stretching  shining  floors  and  walls  and 
columns,  pure  white  and  pearl-gray,  faintly 
touched  with  colors  of  exquisite  delicacy. 
And  over  it  all  was  the  roof  of  white  or  pale 
gray  glass   tinged  with  golden-red — the   roof 


A  CRYSTAL  AGE  71 

which  I  had  seen  from  the  outside  when  it 
seemed  to  me  like  a  cloud  resting  on  the 
stony  summit  of  a  hill. 

On  coming  in  I  had  the  impression  of  an 
empty,  silent  place;  yet  the  inmates  of  the 
house  were  all  there;  they  were  sitting  and 
reclining  on  low  couches,  some  lying  at  their 
ease  on  straw  mats  on  the  floor;  some  were 
reading,  others  were  occupied  with  some  work 
in  their  hands,  and  some  were  conversing, 
the  sound  coming  to  me  like  a  faint  murmur 
from  a  distance. 

At  one  side,  somewhere  about  the  center 
of  the  room,  there  was  a  broad  raised  place, 
or  dais,  with  a  couch  on  it,  on  which  the 
father  was  reclining  at  his  ease.  Beside  the 
couch  stood  a  lectern  on  which  a  large  volume 
rested,  and  before  him  there  was  a  brass 
box  or  cabinet,  and  behind  the  couch  seven 
polished  brass  globes  were  ranged,  suspended 
on  axles  resting  on  bronze  frames.  These 
globes  varied  in  size,  the  largest  being  not 
less  than  about  twelve  feet  in  circumference. 

I  noticed  that  there  were  books  on  a  low 
stand  near  me.     They  were   all   folios,   very 


72  A  CRYSTAL  AGE 

much  alike  in  form  and  thickness;  and  seeing 
presently  that  the  others  were  all  following 
their  own  inclinations,  and  considering  that  I 
had  been  left  to  my  own  resources  and  that 
it  is  a  good  plan  when  at  Rome  to  do  as  the 
Romans  do,  I  by-and-by  ventured  to  help 
myself  to  a  volume,  which  I  carried  to  one  of 
the  reading-stands. 

Books  are  grand  things — sometimes,  thought 
I,  prepared  to  follow  the  advice  I  had  received, 
and  find  out  by  reading  all  about  the  customs 
of  this  people,  especially  their  ideas  concerning 
The  House,  which  appeared  to  be  an  object 
of  almost  religious  regard  with  them.  This 
would  make  me  quite  independent,  and  teach 
me  how  to  avoid  blundering  in  the  future,  or 
giving  expression  to  any  more  "extraordinary 
delusions."  On  opening  the  volume  I  was 
greatly  surprised  to  find  that  it  was  richly 
illuminated  on  every  leaf,  the  middle  only 
of  each  page  being  occupied  with  a  rather 
narrow  strip  of  writing;  but  the  minute  letters, 
resembling  Hebrew  characters,  were  incom- 
prehensible to  me.  I  bore  the  disappointment 
very  cheerfully,  I  must  say,  for  I  am  not  over- 


A  CRYSTAL  AGE  73 

fond  of  study;  and,  besides,  I  could  not  have 
paid  proper  attention  to  the  text,  surrounded 
with  all  that  distracting  beauty  of  graceful 
design  and  brilliant  coloring. 

After  a  while  Yoletta  came  slowly  across 
the  room,  her  fingers  engaged  with  some  kind 
of  wool-work  as  she  walked,  and  my  heart 
beat  fast  when  she  paused  by  my  side. 

"You  are  not  reading,"  she  said,  looking 
curiously  at  me.  "I  have  been  watching  you 
for  some  time." 

"Have  you  indeed*?"  said  I,  not  knowing 
whether  to  feel  flattered  or  not.  "No,  un- 
fortunately, I  can't  read  this  book,  as  I  do  not 
understand  the  letters.  But  what  a  wonder- 
fully beautiful  book  it  is!  I  was  just  thinking 
what  some  of  the  great  London  book-buyers — 
Ouaritch,  for  instance — would  be  tempted  to 
give  for  it.  Oh,  I  am  forgetting — you  have 
never  heard  his  name,  of  course;  but — but 
what  a  beautiful  book  it  is !" 

She  said  nothing  in  reply,  and  only  looked 
a  little  surprised — disgusted,  I  feared — at  my 
ignorance,  then  walked  away.  I  had  hoped 
that  she  was  going  to  talk  to  me,  and  with 


74  A  CRYSTAL  AGE 

keen  disappointment  watched  her  moving 
across  the  floor.  All  the  glory  seemed  now 
to  have  gone  out  of  the  leaves  of  the  volume, 
and  I  continued  turning  them  over  listlessly, 
glancing  at  intervals  at  the  beautiful  girl,  who 
was  also  like  one  of  the  pages  before  me, 
wonderful  to  look  at  and  hard  to  understand. 
In  a  distant  part  of  the  room  I  saw  her  place 
some  cushions  on  the  floor,  and  settle  herself 
on  them  to  do  her  work. 

The  sun  had  set  by  this  time,  and  the 
interior  was  growing  darker  by  degrees;  the 
fading  light,  however,  seemed  to  make  no 
difference  to  those  who  worked  or  read.  They 
appeared  to  be  gifted  with  an  owlish  vision, 
able  to  see  with  very  little  light.  The  father 
alone  did  nothing,  but  still  rested  on  his  couch, 
perhaps  indulging  in  a  post-prandial  nap.  At 
length  he  roused  himself  and  looked  around  him. 

"There  is  no  melody  in  our  hearts  this 
evening,  my  children,"  he  said.  "When  an- 
other day  has  passed  over  us  it  will  perhaps 
be  different.  To-night  the  voice  so  recently 
stilled  in  death  forever  would  be  too  painfully 
missed  by  all  of  us." 


A  CRYSTAL  AGE  75 

Some  one  then  rose  and  brought  a  tall  wax 
taper  and  placed  it  near  him.  The  flame 
threw  a  little  brightness  on  the  volume,  which 
he  now  proceeded  to  open;  and  here  and 
there,  further  away,  it  flashed  and  trembled 
in  points  of  rainbow-colored  light  on  a  tall 
column;  but  the  greater  part  of  the  room  still 
remained  in  twilight  obscurity. 

He  began  to  read  aloud,  and,  although  he 
did  not  seem  to  raise  his  voice  above  its  usual 
pitch,   the  words  he  uttered  fell  on  my  ears 
with  a  distinctness  and  purity  of  sound  which 
made    them    seem    like    a    melody    "sweetly 
played  in  tune."     The  words  he  read  related 
to  life  and  death,   and  such  solemn  matters; 
but  to  my  mind  his  theology  seemed  somewhat 
fantastical,  although  it  is  right  to  confess  that 
I  am  no  judge  of  such  matters.     There  was 
also  a  great  deal  about  the  house,  which  did  not 
enlighten  me  much,  being  too  rhapsodical,  and 
when  he  spoke  about  our  conduct  and  aims  in 
life,  and  things  of  that  kind,  I  understood  him 
little  better.    Here  is  a  part  of  his  discourse  :— 

"It  is  natural  to  grieve  for  those  that  die, 


76  A  CRYSTAL  AGE 

because  light  and  knowledge  and  love  and  joy 
are  no  longer  theirs;  but  they  grieve  not  any 
more,  being  now  asleep  on  the  lap  of  the 
Universal  Mother,  the  bride  of  the  Father, 
who  is  with  us,  sharing  our  sorrow,  which  was 
his  first;  but  it  dims  not  his  everlasting  bright- 
ness; and  his  desire  and  our  glory  is  that  we 
should  always  and  in  all  things  resemble  him. 

"The  end  of  every  day  is  darkness,  but 
the  Father  of  life  through  our  reason  has 
taught  us  to  mitigate  the  exceeding  bitterness 
of  our  end;  otherwise,  we  that  are  above  all 
other  creatures  in  the  earth  should  have  been 
at  the  last  more  miserable  than  they.  For 
in  the  irrational  world,  between  the  different 
kinds,  there  reigns  perpetual  strife  and  blood- 
shed, the  strong  devouring  the  weak  and  the 
incapable;  and  when  failure  of  life  clouds  the 
brightness  of  that  lower  soul,  which  is  theirs, 
the  end  is  not  long  delayed.  Thus  the  life 
that  has  lasted  many  days  goes  out  with  a 
brief  pang,  and  in  its  going  gives  new  vigor 
to  the  strong  that  have  yet  many  days  to  live. 
Thus  also  does  the  ever-living  earth  from  the 
dust  of  dead  generations  of  leaves  re-make  a 
fresh  foliage,  and  for  herself  a  new  garment. 

"We  only,  of  all  things  having  life,  being 
like  the  Father,  slay  not  nor  are  slain,   and 


A  CRYSTAL  AGE  77 

are  without  enemies  in  the  earth;  for  even 
the  lower  kinds,  which  have  not  reason, 
know  without  reason  that  we  are  highest  on 
the  earth,  and  see  in  us,  alone  of  all  his 
works,  the  majesty  of  the  Father,  and  lose 
all  their  rage  in  our  presence.  Therefore, 
when  the  night  is  near,  when  life  is  a  burden 
and  we  remember  our  mortality,  we  hasten 
the  end,  that  those  we  love  may  cease  to 
sorrow  at  the  sight  of  our  decline;  and  we 
know  that  this  is  his  will  who  called  us  into 
being,  and  gave  us  life  and  joy  on  the  earth 
for  a  season,  but  not  forever. 

"It  is  bitter  to  lay  down  the  life  that  is 
ours,  to  leave  all  things — the  love  of  our 
kindred;  the  beauty  of  the  world  and  of  the 
house;  the  labor  in  which  we  take  delight, 
to  go  forth  and  be  no  more:  but  the  bitter- 
ness endures  not,  and  is  scarcely  tasted  when 
in  our  last  moments  we  remember  that  our 
labor  has  borne  fruit;  that  the  letters  we 
have  written  perish  not  with  us,  but  remain 
as  a  testimony  and  a  joy  to  succeeding  gen- 
erations, and  live  in  the  house  forever. 

"For  the  house  is  the  image  of  the  world, 
and  we  that  live  and  labor  in  it  are  the 
image  of  our  Father  who  made  the  world; 
and,  like  him,  we  labor  to  make  for  ourselves 


78  A  CRYSTAL  AGE 

a  worthy  habitation,  which  shall  not  shame 
our  teacher.  This  is  his  desire;  for  in  all 
his  works,  and  that  knowledge  which  is  like 
pure  water  to  one  that  thirsts,  and  satisfies 
and  leaves  no  taste  of  bitterness  on  the 
palate,  we  learn  the  will  of  him  that  called 
us  into  life.  All  the  knowledge  we  seek,  the 
invention  and  skill  we  possess,  and  the  labor 
of  our  hands,  has  this  purpose  only:  for  all 
knowledge  and  invention  and  labor  having 
any  other  purpose  whatsoever  is  empty  and 
vain  in  comparison,  and  unworthy  of  those 
that  are  made  in  the  image  of  the  Father  of 
life.  For  just  as  the  bodily  senses  may 
become  perverted,  and  the  taste  lose  its  dis- 
crimination, so  that  the  hungry  man  will 
devour  acrid  fruits  and  poisonous  herbs  for 
aliment,  so  is  the  mind  capable  of  seeking 
out  new  paths,  and  a  knowledge  which  leads 
only  to  misery  and  destruction. 

"Thus  we  know  that  in  the  past  men  sought 
after  knowledge  of  various  kinds,  asking  not 
whether  it  was  for  good  or  for  evil :  but  every 
offense  of  the  mind  and  the  body  has  its 
appropriate  reward;  and  while  their  knowledge 
grew  apace,  that  better  knowledge  and  dis- 
crimination which  the  Father  gives  to  every 
living  soul,  both  in  man  and  in  beast,   was 


A  CRYSTAL  AGE  79 

taken  from  them.  Thus  by  increasing  their 
riches  they  were  made  poorer;  and,  like  one 
who,  forgetting  the  limits  that  are  set  to  his 
faculties,  gazes  steadfastly  on  the  sun,  by  see- 
ing much  they  become  afflicted  with  blindness. 
But  they  knew  not  their  poverty  and  blindness, 
and  were  not  satisfied;  but  were  like  ship- 
wrecked men  on  a  lonely  and  barren  rock  in 
the  midst  of  the  sea,  who  are  consumed  with 
thirst,  and  drink  of  no  sweet  spring,  but  of 
the  bitter  wave,  and  thirst,  and  drink  again, 
until  madness  possesses  their  brains,  and  death 
releases  them  from  their  misery.  Thus  did 
they  thirst,  and  drink  again,  and  were  crazed; 
being  inflamed  with  the  desire  to  learn  the 
secrets  of  nature,  hesitating  not  to  dip  their 
hands  in  blood,  seeking  in  the  living  tissues 
of  animals  for  the  hidden  springs  of  life.  For 
in  their  madness  they  hoped  by  knowledge  to 
gain  absolute  dominion  over  nature,  thereby 
taking  from  the  Father  of  the  world  his 
prerogative. 

"But  their  vain  ambition  lasted  not,  and 
the  end  of  it  was  death.  The  madness  of 
their  minds  preyed  on  their  bodies,  and  worms 
were  bred  in  their  corrupted  flesh:  and  these, 
after  feeding  on  their  tissues,  changed  their 
forms;  and  becoming  winged,  flew  out  in  the 


80  A  CRYSTAL  AGE 

breath  of  their  nostrils,  like  clouds  of  winged 
ants  that  issue  in  the  spring-time  from  their 
breeding-places;  and,  flying  from  body  to 
body,  filled  the  race  of  men  in  all  places  with 
corruption  and  decay;  and  the  Mother  of 
men  was  thus  avenged  of  her  children  for 
their  pride  and  folly,  for  they  perished 
miserably,   devoured  of  worms. 

"Of  the  human  race  only  a  small  remnant 
survived,  these  being  men  of  an  humble  mind, 
who  had  lived  apart  and  unknown  to  their 
fellows;  and  after  long  centuries  they  went 
forth  into  the  wilderness  of  earth  and  re- 
peopled  it:  but  nowhere  did  they  find  any 
trace  or  record  of  those  that  had  passed 
away;  for  earth  had  covered  all  their  ruined 
works  with  her  dark  mold  and  green  forests, 
even  as  a  man  hides  unsightly  scars  on  his 
body  with  a  new  and  beautiful  garment.  Nor 
is  it  known  to  us  when  this  destruction  fell 
upon  the  race  of  men;  we  only  know  that 
the  history  thereof  was  graven  an  hundred 
centuries  ago  on  the  granite  pillars  of  the 
House  of  Evor,  on  the  plains  between  the 
sea  and  the  snow-covered  mountains  of  Elf. 
Thither  in  past  ages  some  of  our  pilgrims 
journeyed,  and  have  brought  a  record  of  these 
things;  nor  in  our  house  only  are  they  known, 


A  CRYSTAL  AGE  81 

but  in  many  houses  throughout  the  world  have 
they  been  written  for  the  instruction  of  all  men 
and  a  warning  for  all  time. 

"But  to  mankind  there  shall  come  no  second 
darkness  of  error,  nor  seeking  after  vain  know- 
ledge; and  in  the  Father's  House  there  shall 
be  no  second  desolation,  but  the  sounds  of 
joy  and  melody,  which  were  silent,  shall  be 
heard  everlastingly;  since  we  had  now  con- 
tinued long  in  this  even  mind,  seeking  only 
to  inform  ourselves  of  his  will;  until  as  in  a 
clear  crystal  without  flaw  shining  with  colored 
light,  or  as  a  glassy  lake  reflecting  within  itself 
the  heavens  and  every  cloud  and  star,  so  is 
he  reflected  in  our  minds;  and  in  the  house 
we  are  his  viceregents,  and  in  the  world  his 
co-workers;  and  for  the  glory  which  he  has  in 
his  work  we  have  a  like  glory  in  ours. 

"He  is  our  teacher.  Morning  and  evening 
throughout  the  various  world,  in  the  proces- 
sion of  the  seasons,  and  in  the  blue  heavens 
powdered  with  stars;  in  mountain  and  plain 
and  many-toned  forest;  in  the  sounding  walls 
of  the  ocean,  and  in  the  billowy  seas  through 
which  we  pass  in  peril  from  land  to  land,  we 
read  his  thoughts  and  listen  to  his  voice. 
Here  do  we  leam  with  what  far-seeing 
intelligence   he   has   laid   the    foundations    of 


82  A  CRYSTAL  AGE 

his  everlasting  mansion,  how  skillfully  he 
has  builded  its  walls,  and  with  what  prodigal 
richness  he  has  decorated  all  his  works. 
For  the  sunlight  and  moonlight  and  the 
blueness  of  heaven  are  his;  the  sea  with 
its  tides;  the  blackness  and  the  lightnings 
of  the  tempest,  and  snow,  and  changeful 
winds,  and  green  and  yellow  leaf;  his  are 
also  the  silver  rain  and  the  rainbow,  the 
shadows  and  the  many-colored  mists,  which 
he  flings  like  a  mantle  over  all  the  world. 
Herein  do  we  learn  that  he  loves  a  stable 
building,  and  that  the  foundations  and  walls 
shall  endure  for  ever:  yet  loves  not  same- 
ness; thus,  from  day  to  day  and  from  season 
to  season  do  all  things  change  their  aspect, 
and  the  walls  and  floor  and  roof  of  his 
dwelling  are  covered  with  a  new  glory.  But 
to  us  it  is  not  given  to  rise  to  this  supreme 
majesty  in  our  works;  therefore  do  we,  like 
him  yet  unable  to  reach  so  great  a  height, 
borrow  nothing  one  from  the  other,  but  in 
each  house  learn  separately  from  him  alone 
who  has  infinite  riches;  so  that  every 
habitation,  changeless  and  eternal  in  itself, 
shall  yet  differ  from  all  others,  having  its 
own  special  beauty  and  splendor:  for  we 
inhabit  one  house  only,  but  the  Father  of 
men  inhabits  all. 


A  CRYSTAL  AGE  83 

"These  things  are  written  for  the  refresh- 
ment and  delight  of  those  who  may  no 
longer  journey  into  distant  lands;  and  they 
are  in  the  library  of  the  house  in  the  seven 
thousand  volumes  of  the  Houses  of  the 
World  which  our  pilgrims  have  visited  in 
past  ages.  For  once  in  a  lifetime  is  it 
ordained  that  a  man  shall  leave  his  own 
place  and  travel  for  the  space  of  ten  years, 
visiting  the  most  famous  houses  in  every 
land  he  enters,  and  also  seeking  out  those 
of  which  no  report  has  reached  us. 

"When  the  time  for  this  chief  adventure 
comes,  and  we  go  forth  for  a  long  period, 
there  is  compensation  for  every  weariness, 
with  absence  of  kindred  and  the  sweet  shelter 
of  our  own  home:  for  now  do  we  learn  the 
infinite  riches  of  the  Father;  for  just  as  the 
day  changes  every  hour,  from  the  morning 
to  the  evening  twilight,  so  does  the  aspect 
of  the  world  alter  as  we  progress  from  day  to 
day;  and  in  all  places  our  fellow-men,  learn- 
ing as  we  do  from  him  only,  and  seeing  that 
which  is  nearest,  give  a  special  color  of  nature 
to  their  lives  and  their  houses;  and  every 
house,  with  the  family  which  inhabits  it,  in 
their  conversation  and  the  arts  in  which  they 
excel,  is  like  a  round  lake  set  about  with  hills, 


84  A  CRYSTAL  AGE 

wherein  may  be  seen  that  visible  world.  And  in 
all  the  earth  there  is  no  land  without  inhabi- 
tants, whether  on  wide  continents  or  islands 
of  the  sea;  and  in  all  nature  there  is  no 
grandeur  or  beauty  or  grace  which  men  have 
not  copied;  knowing  that  this  is  pleasing  to  the 
Father :  for  we,  that  are  made  like  him,  delight 
not  to  work  without  witnesses;  and  we  are  his 
witnesses  in  the  earth,  taking  pleasure  in  his 
works,  even  as  he  also  does  in  ours. 

"Thus,  at  the  beginning  of  our  journey  to 
the  far  south,  where  we  go  to  look  first  on 
those  bright  lands,  which  have  hotter  suns  and 
a  greater  variety  than  ours,  we  come  to  the 
wilderness  of  Coradine,  which  seems  barren 
and  desolate  to  our  sight,  accustomed  to  the 
deep  verdure  of  woods  and  valleys,  and  the 
blue  mists  of  an  abundant  moisture.  There  a 
stony  soil  brings  forth  only  thorns,  and  thistles, 
and  sere  tufts  of  grass;  and  blustering  winds 
rush  over  the  unsheltered  reaches,  where  the 
rough-haired  goats  huddle  for  warmth;  and 
there  is  no  melody  save  the  many-toned 
voices  of  the  wind  and  the  plover's  wild  cry. 
There  dwell  the  children  of  Coradine,  on 
the  threshold  of  the  wind-vexed  wilderness, 
where  the  stupendous  columns  of  green  glass 
uphold  the  roof  of  the  House  of  Coradine; 


A  CRYSTAL  AGE  85 

the  ocean's  voice  is  in  their  rooms,  and  the 
inland-blowing  wind  brings  to  them  the  salt 
spray  and  yellow  sand  swept  at  low  tide  from 
the  desolate  floors  of  the  sea,  and  the  white- 
winged  bird  flying  from  the  black  tempest 
screams  aloud  in  their  shadowy  halls.  There, 
from  the  high  terraces,  when  the  moon  is 
at  its  full,  we  see  the  children  of  Coradine 
gathered  together,  arrayed  like  no  others,  in 
shining  garments  of  gossamer  threads,  when, 
like  thistle-down  chased  by  eddying  winds, 
now  whirling  in  a  cloud,  now  scattering  far 
apart,  they  dance  their  moonlight  dances  on 
the  wide  alabaster  floors;  and  coming  and 
going  they  pass  away,  and  seem  to  melt  into 
the  moonlight,  yet  ever  to  return  again  with 
changeful  melody  and  new  measures.  And, 
seeing  this,  all  those  things  in  which  we  our- 
selves excel  seem  poor  in  comparison,  becom- 
ing pale  in  our  memories.  For  the  winds  and 
waves,  and  the  whiteness  and  grace,  has  been 
ever  with  them;  and  the  winged  seed  of  the 
thistle,  and  the  flight  of  the  gull,  and  the 
storm-vexed  sea,  flowering  in  foam,  and  the 
light  of  the  moon  on  sea  and  barren  land, 
have  taught  them  this  art,  and  a  swiftness 
and  grace  which  they  alone  possess. 

"Yet  does  this  moonlight  dance,  which  is  the 


86  A  CRYSTAL  AGE 

chief  glory  of  the  House  of  Coradine,  grow 
pale  in  the  mind,  and  is  speedily  forgotten, 
when  another  is  seen;  and,  going  on  our  way 
from  house  to  house,  we  learn  how  everywhere 
the  various  riches  of  the  world  have  been 
taken  into  his  soul  by  man,  and  made  part  of 
his  life.  Nor  are  we  inferior  to  others,  having 
also  an  art  and  chief  excellence  which  is  ours 
only,  and  the  fame  of  which  has  long  gone 
forth  into  the  world;  so  that  from  many  distant 
lands  pilgrims  gather  yearly  to  our  fields  to 
listen  to  our  harvest  melody,  when  the  sun- 
ripened  fruits  have  been  garnered,  and  our 
lips  and  hands  make  undying  music,  to  gladden 
the  hearts  of  those  that  hear  it  all  their  lives 
long.  For  then  do  we  rejoice  beyond  others, 
rising  like  bright-winged  insects  from  our  lowly 
state  to  a  higher  life  of  glory  and  joy,  which 
is  ours  for  the  space  of  three  whole  days. 
Then  the  august  Mother,  in  a  brazen  chariot, 
is  drawn  from  field  to  field  by  milk-white 
bulls  with  golden  horns;  then  her  children  are 
gathered  about  her  in  shining  yellow  garments, 
with  armlets  of  gold  upon  their  arms;  and  with 
voice  and  instruments  of  forms  unknown  to  the 
stranger,  they  make  glad  the  listening  fields 
with  the  great  harvest  melody. 

"In  ancient  days  the  children  of  our  house 


A  CRYSTAL  AGE  87 

conceived  it  in  their  hearts,  hearing  it  in  all 
nature's  voices;  and  it  was  with  them  day  and 
night,  and  they  whispered  it  to  one  another 
when  it  was  no  louder  than  the  whisper  of 
the  wind  in  the  forest  leaves;  and  as  the 
Builder  of  the  world  brings  from  an  hundred 
far  places  the  mist,  and  the  dew,  and  the  sun- 
shine, and  the  light  west  wind,  to  give  to  the 
morning  hour  its  freshness  and  glory;  and 
as  we,  his  humbler  followers,  seek  far  off  in 
caverns  of  the  hills  and  in  the  dark  bowels 
of  the  earth  for  minerals  and  dyes  that  out- 
shine the  flowers  and  the  sun,  to  beautify 
the  walls  of  our  house,  so  everywhere  by  night 
and  day  for  long  centuries  did  we  listen  to 
all  sounds,  and  made  their  mystery  and  melody 
ours,  until  this  great  song  was  perfected  in  our 
hearts,  and  the  fame  of  it  in  all  lands  has 
caused  our  house  to  be  called  the  House  of 
the  Harvest  Melody;  and  when  the  yearly 
pilgrims  behold  our  procession  in  the  fields, 
and  listen  to  our  song,  all  the  glory  of  the 
world  seems  to  pass  before  them,  overcoming 
their  hearts,  until,  bursting  into  tears  and  loud 
cries,  they  cast  themselves  upon  the  earth  and 
worship  the  Father  of  the  whole  world. 

"This  shall  be  the  chief  glory  of  our  house 
for  ever;  when  a  thousand  years  have  gone 


88  A  CRYSTAL  AGE 

by,  and  we  that  are  now  living,  like  those 
that  have  been,  are  mingled  with  the  nature 
we  come  from,  and  speak  to  our  children 
only  in  the  wind's  voice,  and  the  cry  of  the 
passage-bird,  pilgrims  shall  still  come  to  these 
sun-bright  fields,  to  rejoice,  and  worship  the 
Father  of  the  world,  and  bless  the  august 
Mother  of  the  house,  from  whose  sacred  womb 
ever  comes  to  it  life  and  love  and  joy,  and  the 
harvest  melody  that  shall  endure  for  ever." 


VI 


The  reading  went  on,  not  of  course  "for  ever," 
like  that  harvest  melody  he  spoke  of,  but  for 
a  considerable  time.  The  words,  I  concluded, 
were  for  the  initiated,  and  not  for  me,  and 
after  a  while  I  gave  up  trying  to  make  out 
what  it  was  all  about.  Those  last  expressions 
I  have  quoted  about  the  "august  Mother  of 
the  house"  were  unintelligible,  and  appeared 
to  me  meaningless.  I  had  already  come 
to  the  conclusion  that  however  many  of 
the  ladies  of  the  establishment  might  have 
experienced  the  pleasures  and  pains  of 
maternity,  there  was  really  no  mother  of  the 
house  in  the  sense  that  there  was  a  father 
of  the  house:  that  is  to  say,  one  possessing 
authority  over  the  others  and  calling  them 
all  her  children  indiscriminately.  Yet  this 
mysterious  non-existent  mother  of  the  house 
was  continually  being  spoken  of,  as  I  found 

89 


90  A  CRYSTAL  AGE 

now  and  afterwards  when  I  listened  to  the 
talk  around  me.  After  thinking  the  matter 
over,  I  came  to  the  conclusion  that  "mother 
of  the  house"  was  merely  a  convenient  fiction, 
and  simply  stood  for  the  general  sense  of 
the  women-folk,  or  something  of  the  sort. 
It  was  perhaps  stupid  of  me,  but  the  story 
of  Mistrelde,  who  died  young,  leaving  only 
eight  children,  I  had  regarded  as  a  mere 
legend  or  fable  of  antiquity. 

To  return  to  the  reading.  Just  as  I  had  been 
absorbed  before  in  that  beautiful  book  with- 
out being  able  to  read  it,  so  now  I  listened 
to  that  melodious  and  majestic  voice,  experi- 
encing a  singular  pleasure  without  properly 
understanding  the  sense.  I  remembered  now 
with  a  painful  feeling  of  inferiority  that  my 
thick  speech  had  been  remarked  on  earlier 
in  the  day;  and  I  could  not  but  think  that, 
compared  with  the  speech  of  this  people,  it 
was  thick.  In  their  rare  physical  beauty,  the 
color  of  their  eyes  and  hair,  and  in  their 
fascinating  dress,  they  had  struck  me  as  being 
utterly  unlike  any  people  ever  seen  by  me. 
But    it    was    perhaps    in    their    clear,    sweet, 


A  CRYSTAL  AGE  91 

penetrative  voice,  which  sometimes  reminded 
me  of  a  tender-toned  wind  instrument,  that 
they  most  differed  from  others. 

The  reading,  I  have  said,  had  struck  me  as 
almost  of  the  nature  of  a  religious  service; 
nevertheless,  everything  went  on  as  before — 
reading,  working,  and  occasional  conversation; 
but  the  subdued  talking  and  moving  about 
did  not  interfere  with  one's  pleasure  in  the 
old  man's  musical  speech  any  more  than  the 
soft  murmur  and  flying  about  of  honey  bees 
would  prevent  one  from  enjoying  the  singing 
of  a  skylark.  Emboldened  by  what  I  saw 
the  others  doing,  I  left  my  seat  and  made  my 
way  across  the  floor  to  Yoletta's  side,  stealing 
through  the  gloom  with  great  caution  to  avoid 
making  a  clatter  with  those  abominable  boots. 

"May  I  sit  down  near  you?"  said  I  with 
some  hesitation;  but  she  encouraged  me  with 
a  smile  and  placed  a  cushion  for  me. 

I  settled  myself  down  in  the  most  graceful 
position  I  could  assume,  which  was  not  at 
all  graceful,  doubling  my  objectionable  legs 
out  of  her  sight;  and  then  began  my  trouble, 
for  I   was   greatly  perplexed   to  know   what 


92  A  CRYSTAL  AGE 

to  say  to  her.  I  thought  of  lawn-tennis 
and  archery,  Ellen  Terry's  acting,  the  Royal 
Academy  Exhibition,  private  theatricals,  and 
twenty  things  besides,  but  they  all  seemed 
unsuitable  subjects  to  start  conversation  with 
in  this  case.  There  was,  I  began  to  fear,  no 
common  ground  on  which  we  could  meet  and 
exchange  thoughts,  or,  at  any  rate,  words. 
Then  I  remembered  that  ground,  common 
and  broad  enough,  of  our  human  feelings, 
especially  the  sweet  and  important  feeling 
of  love.  But  how  was  I  to  lead  up  to  it*? 
The  work  she  was  engaged  with  at  length 
suggested  an  opening,  and  the  opportunity  to 
make  a  pretty  little  speech. 

"Your  sight  must  be  as  good  as  your  eyes 
are  pretty,"  said  I,  "to  enable  you  to  work 
in  such  a  dim  light." 

"Oh,  the  light  is  good  enough,"  she 
answered,  taking  no  notice  of  the  compli- 
ment. "Besides,  this  is  such  easy  work  I 
could  do  it  in  the  dark." 

"It  is  very  pretty  work — may  I  look  at  it?" 

She  handed  the  stuff  to  me,  but  instead  of 
taking  it  in  the  ordinary  way,  I  placed  my 


A  CRYSTAL  AGE  93 

hand  under  hers,  and,  holding  up  cloth  and 
hand  together,  proceeded  to  give  a  minute 
and  prolonged  scrutiny  to  her  work. 

"Do  you  know  that  I  am  enjoying  two 
distinct  pleasures  at  one  and  the  same  time'?" 
said  I.  "One  is  in  seeing  your  work,  the 
other  in  holding  your  hand;  and  I  think  the 
last  pleasure  even  greater  than  the  first."  As 
she  made  no  reply,  I  added  somewhat  lamely: 
"May  I — keep  on  holding  it?" 

"That  would  prevent  me  from  working," 
she  answered,  with  the  utmost  gravity.  "But 
you  may  hold  it  for  a  little  while." 

"Oh,  thank  you,"  I  exclaimed,  delighted 
with  the  privilege;  and  then,  to  make  the 
most  of  my  precious  "little  while,"  I  pressed 
it  warmly,  whereupon  she  cried  out  aloud: 
"Oh,  Smith,  you  are  squeezing  too  hard — 
you  hurt  my  hand!" 

I  dropped  it  instantly  in  the  greatest 
confusion.  "Oh,  for  goodness  sake,"  I 
stammered,  "please,  do  not  make  such  an 
outcry!  You  don't  know  what  a  hobble  you'll 
get  me  into." 

Fortunately,   no   notice   was   taken   of   the 


94  A  CRYSTAL  AGE 

exclamation,  though  it  was  hard  to  believe 
that  her  words  had  not  been  overheard; 
and  presently,  recovering  from  my  fright,  I 
apologized  for  hurting  her,  and  hoped  she 
would  forgive  me. 

"There  is  nothing  to  forgive,"  she  returned 
gently.  "You  did  not  really  squeeze  hard, 
only  my  hand  hurts,  because  to-day  when  I 
pressed  it  on  the  ground  beside  the  grave 
I  ran  a  small  thorn  into  it."  Then  the 
remembrance  of  that  scene  at  the  burial 
brought  a  sudden  mist  of  tears  into  her 
lovely   eyes. 

"I  am  so  sorry  I  hurt  you,  Yoletta — may 
I  call  you  Yoletta*?"  said  I,  all  at  once 
remembering  that  she  had  called  me  Smith, 
without  the  customary  prefix. 

"Why,  that  is  my  name — what  else  shouldyou 
call  me*?"  she  returned,  evidently  with  surprise. 

"It  is  a  pretty  name,  and  so  sweet  on 
the  lips  that  I  should  like  to  be  repeating 
it  continually,"  I  answered.  "But  it  is  only 
right  that  you  should  have  a  pretty  name, 
because — well,  if  I  may  tell  you,  because  you 
are  so  very  beautiful." 


A  CRYSTAL  AGE  95 

"Yes;  but  is  that  strange — are  not  all 
people  beautiful*?" 

I  thought  of  certain  London  types,  especially 
among  the  "criminal  classes,"  and  of  the  old 
women  with  withered,  simian  faces  and  wear- 
ing shawls,  slinking  in  or  out  of  public-houses 
at  the  street  corners;  and  also  of  some  people 
of  a  better  class  I  had  known  personally — 
some  even  in  the  House  of  Commons;  and 
I  felt  that  I  could  not  agree  with  her,  much 
as  I  wished  to  do  so,  without  straining  my 
conscience. 

"At  all  events,  you  will  allow,"  said  I, 
evading  the  question,  "that  there  are  degrees 
of  beauty,  just  as  there  are  degrees  of  light. 
You  may  be  able  to  see  to  work  in  this 
light,  but  it  is  very  faint  compared  with  the 
noonday  light  when  the  sun  is  shining." 

"Oh,  there  is  not  so  great  a  difference 
between  people  as  that"  she  replied,  with  the 
air  of  a  philosopher.  "There  are  different 
kinds  of  beauty,  I  allow,  and  some  people 
seem  more  beautiful  to  us  than  others,  but 
that  is  only  because  we  love  them  more.  The 
best   loved   are   always   the   most   beautiful." 


96  A  CRYSTAL  AGE 

This  seemed  to  reverse  the  usual  idea, 
that  the  more  beautiful  the  person  is  the 
more  he  or  she  gets  loved.  However,  I 
was  not  going  to  disagree  with  her  any 
more,  and  only  said:  "How  sweetly  you  talk, 
Yoletta;  you  are  as  wise  as  you  are  beautiful. 
I  could  wish  for  no  greater  pleasure  than  to 
sit  here  listening  to  you  the  whole  evening." 

"Ah,  then,  I  am  sorry  I  must  leave  you 
now,"  she  answered,  with  a  bright  smile  which 
made  me  think  that  perhaps  my  little  speech 
had  pleased  her. 

"Do  you  wonder  why  I  smiled"  she 
added,  as  if  able  to  read  my  thoughts.  "It 
is  because  I  have  often  heard  words  like 
yours  from  one  who  is  waiting  for  me  now." 

This  speech  caused  me  a  jealous  pang.  But 
for  a  few  moments  after  speaking,  she  con- 
tinued regarding  me  with  that  bright,  spiritual 
smile  on  her  lips;  then  it  faded,  and  her  face 
clouded  and  her  glance  fell.  I  did  not  ask 
her  to  tell  me,  nor  did  I  ask  myself,  the  reason 
of  that  change;  and  afterwards  how  often  I 
noticed  that  same  change  in  her,  and  in  the 
others  too — that  sudden  silence  and  clouding 


A  CRYSTAL  AGE  97 

of  the  face,  such  as  may  be  seen  in  one  who 
freely  expresses  himself  to  a  person  who 
cannot  hear,  and  then,  all  at  once  but  too 
late,   remembers   the   other's   infirmity. 

"Must  you  goT  I  only  said.  "What 
shall  I  do  alone?" 

"Oh,  you  shall  not  be  alone,"  she  replied, 
and  going  away  returned  presently  with  another 
lady.  "This  is  Edra,"  she  said  simply.  "She 
will  take  my  place  by  your  side  and  talk  with 
you." 

I  could  not  tell  her  that  she  had  taken  my 
words  too  literally,  that  being  alone  simply 
meant  being  separated  from  her;  but  there 
was  no  help  for  it,  and  some  one,  alas!  some 
one  I  greatly  hated  was  waiting  for  her.  I 
could  only  thank  her  and  her  friend  for  their 
kind  intentions.  But  what  in  the  name  of 
goodness  was  I  to  say  to  this  beautiful  woman 
who  was  sitting  by  me1?  She  was  certainly 
very  beautiful,  with  a  far  more  mature  and 
perhaps  a  nobler  beauty  than  Yoletta's,  her 
age  being  about  twenty-seven  or  twenty-eight; 
but  the  divine  charm  in  the  young  girl's  face 
could,  for  me,  exist  in  no  other. 


98  A  CRYSTAL  AGE 

Presently  she  opened  the  conversation  by 
asking  me  if  I  disliked  being  alone. 

"Well,  no,  perhaps  not  exactly  that,"  I 
said;  "but  I  think  it  much  jollier — much 
more  pleasant,  I  mean — to  have  some  very 
nice  person  to  talk  to." 

She  assented,  and,  pleased  at  her  ready 
intelligence,  I  added:  "And  it  is  particularly 
pleasant  when  you  are  understood.  But  I 
have  no  fear  that  you,  at  any  rate,  will  fail 
to  understand  anything  I  may  say." 

"You  have  had  some  trouble  to-day,"  she 
returned,  with  a  charming  smile.  "I  some- 
times think  that  women  can  understand  even 
more  readily  than  men." 

"There's  not  a  doubt  of  it!"  I  returned 
warmly,  glad  to  find  that  with  Edra  it  was 
all  plain  sailing.  "It  must  be  patent  to 
every  one  that  women  have  far  quicker,  finer 
intellects  than  men,  although  their  brains  are 
smaller;  but  then  quality  is  more  important 
than  mere  quantity.  And  yet,"  I  continued, 
"some  people  hold  that  women  ought  not 
to  have  the  franchise,  or  suffrage,  or  what- 
ever it  is!     Not  that  I  care  two  straws  about 


A  CRYSTAL  AGE  99 

the  question  myself,  and  I  only  hope  they'll 
never  get  it;  but  then  I  think  it  is  so  illogical 
— don't  you?' 

"I  am  afraid  I  do  not  understand  you, 
Smith,"  she  returned,  looking  much  distressed. 

"Well,  no,  I  suppose  not,  but  what  I  said 
was  of  no  consequence,"  I  replied;  then,  wish- 
ing to  make  a  fresh  start,  I  added:  "But  I 
am  so  glad  to  hear  you  call  me  Smith.  It 
makes  it  so  much  more  pleasant  and  home- 
like to  be  treated  without  formality.  It  is 
very  kind  of  you,  I'm  sure." 

"But  surely  your  name  is  Smith1?"  said 
she,  looking  very  much  surprised. 

"Oh  yes,  my  name  is  Smith:  only  of  course 
— well,  the  fact  is,  I  was  just  wondering  what 
to  call  you." 

"My  name  is  Edra,"  she  replied,  looking 
more  bewildered  than  ever;  and  from  that 
moment  the  conversation,  which  had  begun 
so  favorably,  was  nothing  but  a  series  of 
entanglements,  from  which  I  could  only  escape 
in  each  case  by  breaking  the  threads  of  the 
subject  under  discussion,  and  introducing  a 
new  one. 


VII 

The  moment  of  retiring,  to  which  I  had  been 
looking  forward  with  considerable  interest  as 
one  likely  to  bring  fresh  surprises,  arrived  at 
last:  it  brought  only  extreme  discomfort.  I 
was  conducted  (without  a  flat  candlestick) 
along  an  obscure  passage;  then,  at  right 
angles  with  the  first,  a  second  broader, 
lighter  passage,  leading  past  a  great  many 
doors  placed  near  together.  These,  I  ascer- 
tained later,  were  the  dormitories,  or  sleeping- 
cells,  and  were  placed  side  by  side  in  a  row 
opening  on  the  terrace  at  the  back  of  the 
house.  Having  reached  the  door  of  my  box, 
my  conductor  pushed  back  the  sliding-panel, 
and  when  I  had  groped  my  way  to  the  dark 
interior,  closed  it  again  behind  me.  There 
was  no  light  for  me  except  the  light  of  the 
stars;  for  directly  opposite  the  door  by  which 
I  had  entered  stood  another,  open  wide  to  the 

IOO 


A  CRYSTAL  AGE  101 

night,  which  was  apparently  not  intended  ever 
to  be  closed.  The  prospect  was  the  one  I 
had  already  seen — the  wilderness  sloping  to 
the  river,  and  the  glassy  surface  of  the  broad 
water,  reflecting  the  stars,  and  the  black 
masses  of  large  trees.  There  was  no  sound 
save  the  hooting  of  an  owl  in  the  distance, 
and  the  wailing  note  of  some  mournful-minded 
water-fowl.  The  night  air  blew  in  cold  and 
moist,  which  made  my  bones  ache,  though 
they  were  not  broken;  and  feeling  very 
sleepy  and  miserable,  I  groped  about  until  I 
was  rewarded  by  discovering  a  narrow  bed, 
or  cot  of  trellis-work,  on  which  was  a  hard 
straw  pallet  and  a  small  straw  pillow;  also, 
folded  small,  a  kind  of  woolen  sleeping 
garment.  Too  tired  to  keep  out  of  even 
such  an  uninviting  bed,  I  flung  off  my 
clothes,  and  with  my  moldy  tweeds  for  only 
covering  I  laid  me  down,  but  not  to  sleep. 
The  misery  of  it!  for  although  my  body  was 
warm — too  warm,  in  fact — the  wind  blew  on 
my  face  and  bare  feet  and  legs,  and  made  it 
impossible  to  sleep. 

About  midnight,  I  was  just  falling  into  a 


102  A  CRYSTAL  AGE 

doze  when  a  sound  as  of  a  person  coming 
with  a  series  of  jumps  into  the  room  disturbed 
me;  and  starting  up  I  was  horrified  to  see, 
sitting  on  the  floor,  a  great  beast  much  too 
big  for  a  dog,  with  large,  erect  ears.  He  was 
intently  watching  me,  his  round  eyes  shining 
like  a  pair  of  green  phosphorescent  globes. 
Having  no  weapon,  I  was  at  the  brute's 
mercy,  and  was  about  to  utter  a  loud  shout 
to  summon  assistance,  but  as  he  sat  so  still 
I  refrained,  and  began  even  to  hope  that  he 
would  go  quietly  away.  Then  he  stood  up, 
went  back  to  the  door  and  sniffed  audibly 
at  it;  and  thinking  that  he  was  about  to 
relieve  me  of  his  unwelcome  presence,  I 
dropped  my  head  on  the  pillow  and  lay 
perfectly  still.  Then  he  turned  and  glared  at 
me  again,  and  finally,  advancing  deliberately 
to  my  side,  sniffed  at  my  face.  It  was  all 
over  with  me  now,  I  thought,  and  closing 
my  eyes,  and  feeling  my  forehead  growing 
remarkably  moist  in  spite  of  the  cold,  I 
murmured  a  little  prayer.  When  I  looked 
again  the  brute  had  vanished,  to  my  inex- 
pressible  relief. 


A  CRYSTAL  AGE  103 

It  seemed  very  astonishing  that  an  animal 
like  a  wolf  should  come  into  the  house;  but 
I  soon  remembered  that  I  had  seen  no  dogs 
about,  so  that  all  kinds  of  savage,  prowling 
beasts  could  come  in  with  impunity.     It  was 
getting    beyond    a    joke:    but    then    all    this 
seemed    only    a    fit    ending    to    the    perfectly 
absurd  arrangement   into  which   I  had  been 
induced    to    enter.      "Goodness    gracious!"    I 
exclaimed,  sitting  bolt  upright  on  my  straw 
bed,  "am  I  a  rational  being  or  an  inebriated 
donkey,  or  what,   to  have  consented  to  such 
a  proposal?     It  is  clear  that  I  was  not  quite 
in  my  right  mind  when  I  made   the   agree- 
ment, and  I  am  therefore  not  morally  bound 
to  observe  it.     What!  be  a  field  laborer,   a 
hewer   of   wood   and   drawer   of   water,    and 
sleep  on  a  miserable  straw  mat  in  an  open 
porch,  with  wolves  for  visitors  at  all  hours 
of  the   night,   and   all   for   a   few   barbarous 
rags!      I   don't    know   much    about    plowing 
and   that  sort  of  thing,   but   I   suppose   any 
able-bodied  man  can  earn  a  pound  a  week, 
and  that  would  be  fifty-two  pounds  for  a  suit 
of  clothes.     Who  ever  heard  of  such  a  thing! 


104  A  CRYSTAL  AGE 

Wolves  and  all  thrown  in  for  nothing!  I 
daresay  I  shall  have  a  tiger  dropping  in 
presently  just  to  have  a  look  round.  No,  no, 
my  venerable  friend,  that  was  all  excellent 
acting  about  my  extraordinary  delusions,  and 
the  rest  of  it,  but  I  am  not  going  to  be  carried 
so  far  by  them  as  to  adhere  to  such  an  out- 
rageously one-sided  bargain." 

Presently  I  remembered  two  things — divine 
Yoletta  was  the  first;  and  the  second  was  that 
thought  of  the  rare  pleasure  it  would  be  to 
array  myself  in  those  same  "barbarous  rags," 
as  I  had  blasphemously  called  them.  These 
things  had  entered  into  my  soul,  and  had 
become  a  part  of  me — especially — well,  both. 
Those  strange  garments  had  looked  so  refresh- 
ingly picturesque,  and  I  had  conceived  such 
an  intense  longing  to  wear  them!  Was  it  a 
very  contemptible  ambition  on  my  part?  Is  it 
sinful  to  wish  for  any  adornments  other  than 
wisdom  and  sobriety,  a  meek  and  loving  spirit, 
good  works,  and  other  things  of  the  kind? 
Straight  into  my  brain  flashed  the  words  of 
a  sentence  I  had  recently  read — that  is  to 
say,  just  before  my  accident — in  a  biological 


A  CRYSTAL  AGE  105 

work,  and  it  comforted  me  as  much  as  if  an 
angel  with  shining  face  and  rainbow-colored 
wings  had  paid  me  a  visit  in  my  dusky  cell: 
"Unto  Adam  also,  and  his  wife,  did  the  Lord 
God  make  coats  of  skin  and  clothed  them.  This 
has  become,  as  every  one  knows,  a  custom 
among  the  race  of  men,  and  shows  at  present 
no  sign  of  becoming  obsolete.  Moreover, 
that  first  correlation,  namely,  milk-glands  and 
a  hairy  covering,  appears  to  have  entered  the 
very  soul  of  creatures  of  this  class,  and  to  have 
become  psychical  as  well  as  physical,  for  in 
that  type,  which  is  only  for  a  while  inferior  to 
the  angels,  the  fondness  for  this  kind  of  outer 
covering  is  a  strong,  ineradicable  passion!" 
Most  true  and  noble  words,  O  biologist  of 
the  fiery  soul!  It  was  a  delight  to  remember 
them.  A  "strong  and  ineradicable  passion," 
not  merely  to  clothe  the  body,  but  to  clothe  it 
appropriately,  that  is  to  say,  beautifully,  and 
by  so  doing  please  God  and  ourselves.  This 
being  so,  must  we  go  on  for  ever  scraping 
our  faces  with  a  sharp  iron,  until  they  are 
blue  and  spotty  with  manifold  scrapings;  and 
cropping  our  hair  short  to  give  ourselves  an 


106  A  CRYSTAL  AGE 

artificial  resemblance  to  old  dogs  and  monkeys 
— creatures  lower  than  us  in  the  scale  of  being 
— and  array  our  bodies,  like  mutes  at  a 
funeral,  in  repulsive  black — we,  "Eutheria  of 
the  Eutheria,  the  noble  of  the  noble  ?"  And 
all  for  what,  since  it  pleases  not  heaven  nor 
accords  with  our  own  desires'?  For  the  sake 
of  respectability,  perhaps,  whatever  that  may 
mean.  Oh,  then,  a  million  curses  take  it — 
respectability,  I  mean;  may  it  sink  into  the 
bottomless  pit,  and  the  smoke  of  its  torment 
ascend  for  ever  and  ever!  And  having  thus, 
by  taking  thought,  brought  my  mind  into  this 
temper,  I  once  more  finally  determined  to 
have  the  clothes,  and  religiously  to  observe 
the  compact. 

It  made  me  quite  happy  to  end  it  in  this 
way.  The  hard  bed,  the  cold  night  wind 
blowing  on  me,  my  wolfish  visitor,  were  all 
forgotten.  Once  more  I  gave  loose  to  my 
imagination,  and  saw  myself  (clothed  and  in 
my  right  mind)  sitting  at  Yoletta's  feet, 
learning  the  mystery  of  that  sweet,  tranquil 
life  from  her  precious  lips.  A  whole  year  was 
mine  in  which  to  love  her  and  win  her  gentle 


A  CRYSTAL  AGE  1Q? 

heart.     But  her  hand-ah,  that  was  another 
matter.     What  had  I  to  give  in  return  for 
such   a   boon   as   that?     Only   that   strength 
concerning    which    my    venerable    host    had 
spoken    somewhat    encouragingly.      He    had 
also  been   so  good  as   to  mention  my  skill; 
but  I  could  scarcely  trade  on  that.     And  if 
a   whole  year's   labor   was  only   sufficient   to 
pay  for  a  suit  of  clothing,  how  many  years  of 
tod  would  be  required  to  win  Yoletta's  hand? 
Naturally,  at  this  juncture,  I  began  to  draw 
a  parallel  between  my  case  and  that  of  an 
ancient   historical   personage,    whose   name   is 
familiar  to  most.    History  repeats  itself— with 
variations.   Jacob-^namely,  Smith-Cometh  to 
the  well  of  Haran.     He  taketh  acquaintance 
of  Rachel,  here  called  Yoletta.     And  Jacob 
kissed   Rachel,    and   lifted   up  his  voice   and 
wept.      That    is    a    touch    of   nature    I    can 
thoroughly   appreciate— the  kissing,    I  mean- 
but  why  he  wept  I  cannot  tell,  unless   it  be' 
because   he    was   not    an    Englishman.      And 
Jacob  told  Rachel   that  he  was  her  father's 
brother.     I  am  glad  to  have  no  such  startling 
Piece   of  information   to  give   to   the   object 


108  A  CRYSTAL  AGE 

of  my  affections:  we  are  not  even  distant 
relations,  and  her  age  being,  say,  fifteen,  and 
mine  twenty-one,  we  are  so  far  well  suited  to 
each  other,  according  to  my  notions.  Smith 
covenanteth  for  Yoletta,  and  said:  "I  will 
serve  thee  seven  years  for  Yoletta,  thy  younger 
daughter";  and  the  old  gentleman  answered: 
"Abide  with  me,  for  I  would  rather  you  should 
have  her  than  some  other  person."  Now  I 
wonder  whether  the  matter  will  be  complicated 
with  Leah — that  is,  Edra"?  Leah  was  con- 
siderably older  than  Rachel,  and,  like  Edra, 
tender-eyed.  I  do  not  aspire  or  desire  to 
marry  both,  especially  if  I  should,  like  Jacob, 
have  to  begin  with  the  wrong  one,  however 
tender-eyed:  but  for  divine  Yoletta  I  could 
serve  seven  years;  yea,  and  fourteen,  if  it 
comes  to  it. 

Thus  I  mused,  and  thus  I  questioned, 
tossing  and  turning  on  my  inhospitable  hard 
bed,  until  merciful  sleep  laid  her  quieting 
hands  on  the  strings  of  my  brain,  and  hushed 
their  weary  jangling. 


VIII 

Fortunately  I  woke  early  next  morning,  for 
I  was  now  a  member  of  an  early-rising  family, 
and  anxious  to  conform  to  rules.  On  going  to 
the  door  I  found,  to  my  inexpressible  disgust, 
that  I  might  easily  have  closed  it  in  the  way 
I  had  seen  the  other  door  closed,  by  simply 
pulling  out  a  sliding  panel.  There  was  ventila- 
tion enough  without  having  the  place  open  to 
prowling  beasts  of  prey.  I  also  found  that 
if  I  had  turned  up  the  little  straw  bed  I  should 
have  had  warm  woolen  sheets  to  sleep  in. 

I  resolved  to  say  nothing  about  my  nocturnal 
visitor,  not  wishing  to  begin  the  day  by  furnish- 
ing fresh  instances  of  what  might  seem  like 
crass  stupidity  on  my  part.  While  occupied 
with  these  matters  I  began  to  hear  people 
moving  about  and  talking  on  the  terrace,  and 
peeping  out,  I  beheld  a  curious  and  interest- 
ing spectacle.  Down  the  broad  steps  leading 
109 


no  A  CRYSTAL  AGE 

to  the  water  the  people  of  the  house  were 
hurrying,  and  flinging  themselves  like  agile, 
startled  frogs  on  to  the  bosom  of  the  stream. 
There,  in  the  midst  of  his  family,  my  venerable 
host  was  already  disporting  himself,  his  long, 
silvery  beard  and  hair  floating  like  a  foam  on 
the  waves  of  his  own  creating.  And  presently 
from  other  sleeping-rooms  on  a  line  with  mine 
shot  forth  new  bewitching  forms,  each  sparsely 
clothed  in  a  slender  clinging  garment,  which 
concealed  no  beauteous  curve  beneath;  and 
nimbly  running  and  leaping  down  the  slope, 
they    quickly    joined    the    masculine    bathers. 

Looking  about  I  soon  found  a  pretty  thing 
in  which  to  array  myself,  and  quickly  started 
after  the  others,  risking  my  neck  in  my  desire 
to  imitate  the  new  mode  of  motion  I  had  just 
witnessed.  The  water  was  delightfully  cool 
and  refreshing,  and  the  company  very  agree- 
able, ladies  and  gentlemen  all  swimming  and 
diving  about  together  with  the  unconventional 
freedom  and  grace  of  a  company  of  grebes. 

After  dressing,  we  assembled  in  the  eating- 
Toom  or  portico  where  we  had  supped,  just 
when  the  red  disk  of  the  sun  was  showing 


A  CRYSTAL  AGE  m 

itself  above  the  horizon,  kindling  the  clouds 
with  yellow  flame,  and  filling  the  green  world 
with  new  light.  I  felt  happy  and  strong  that 
morning,  very  able  and  willing  to  work  in  the 
fields,  and,  better  than  all,  very  hopeful  about 
that  affair  of  the  heart.  Happiness,  however, 
is  seldom  perfect,  and  in  the  clear,  tender 
morning  light  I  could  not  help  contrasting  my 
own  repulsively  ugly  garments  with  the  bright 
and  beautiful  costumes  worn  by  the  others, 
which  seemed  to  harmonize  so  well  with  their 
fresh,  happy  morning  mood.  I  also  missed  the 
fragrant  cup  of  coffee,  the  streaky  rasher  from 
the  dear  familiar  pig,  and,  after  breakfast,  the 
well-flavored  cigar;  but  these  lesser  draw- 
backs were  soon  forgotten. 

After  the  meal  a  small  closed  basket  was 
handed  to  me,  and  one  of  the  young  men  led 
me  out  to  a  little  distance  from  the  house, 
then,  pointing  to  a  belt  of  wood  about  a  mile 
away,  told  me  to  walk  towards  it  until  I  came 
to  a  plowed  field  on  the  slope  of  a  valley, 
where  I  could  do  some  plowing.  Before 
leaving  me  he  took  from  his  own  person  a 
metal  dog-whistle,  with  a  string  attached,  and 


112  A  CRYSTAL  AGE 

hung  it  round  my  neck,  but  without  explain- 
ing its  use. 

Basket  in  hand  I  went  away,  over  the  dewy 
grass,  whistling  light-heartedly,  and  after  half 
an  hour's  walk  found  the  spot  indicated,  where 
about  an  acre  and  a  half  of  land  had  been 
recently  turned ;  there  also,  lying  in  the  furrow, 
I  found  the  plow,  an  implement  I  knew  very 
little  about.  This  particular  plow,  however, 
appeared  to  be  a  simple,  primitive  thing,  con- 
sisting of  a  long  beam  of  wood,  with  an  upright 
pole  to  guide  it;  a  metal  share  in  the  center, 
going  off  to  one  side,  balanced  on  the  other 
by  a  couple  of  small  wheels;  and  there  were 
also  some  long  ropes  attached  to  a  cross-stick 
at  the  end  of  the  beam.  There  being  no  horses 
or  bullocks  to  do  the  work,  and  being  unable 
to  draw  the  plow  myself  as  well  as  guide  it, 
I  sat  down  leisurely  to  examine  the  contents 
of  my  basket,  which,  I  found,  consisted  of 
brown  bread,  dried  fruit,  and  a  stone  bottle  of 
milk.  Then,  not  knowing  what  else  to  do,  I 
began  to  amuse  myself  by  blowing  on  the 
whistle,  and  emitted  a  most  shrill  and  piercing 
sound,  which  very  soon  produced  an  unexpected 


A  CRYSTAL  AGE  113 

effect.  Two  noble-looking  horses,  resembling 
those  I  had  seen  the  day  before,  came  gallop- 
ing towards  me  as  if  in  response  to  the  sound 
I  had  made.  Approaching  swiftly  to  within 
fifty  yards  they  stood  still,  staring  and  snorting 
as  if  alarmed  or  astonished,  after  which  they 
swept  round  me  three  or  four  times,  neighing 
in  a  sharp,  ringing  manner,  and  finally,  after 
having  exhausted  their  superfluous  energy, 
they  walked  to  the  plow  and  placed  them- 
selves deliberately  before  it.  It  looked  as  if 
these  animals  had  come  at  my  call  to  do  the 
work;  I  therefore  approached  them,  with  more 
than  needful  caution,  using  many  soothing, 
conciliatory  sounds  and  words  the  while,  and 
after  a  little  further  study  I  discovered  how 
to  adjust  the  ropes  to  them.  There  were  no 
blinkers  or  reins,  nor  did  these  superb  animals 
seem  to  think  any  were  wanted ;  but  after  I  had 
taken  the  pole  in  my  hand,  and  said  "Gee  up, 
Dobbin,"  in  a  tone  of  command,  followed  by 
some  inarticulate  clicks  with  the  tongue,  they 
rewarded  me  with  a  disconcerting  stare,  and 
then  began  dragging  the  plow.  As  long 
as  I  held  the  pole  straight  the  share  cut  its 


114  A  CRYSTAL  AGE 

way  evenly  through  the  mold,  but  occasionally, 
owing  to  my  inadvertence,  it  would  go  off  at 
a  tangent  or  curve  quite  out  of  the  ground; 
and  whenever  this  happened  the  horses  would 
stop,  turn  round  and  stare  at  me,  then,  touch- 
ing their  noses  together  seem  to  exchange 
ideas  on  the  subject.  When  the  first  furrow 
was  finished,  they  did  not  double  back,  as  I 
expected,  but  went  straight  away  to  a  distance 
of  thirty  yards,  and  then,  turning,  marched 
back,  cutting  a  fresh  furrow  parallel  with  the 
first,  and  as  straight  as  a  line.  Then  they 
returned  to  the  original  starting-point  and  cut 
another,  then  again  to  the  new  furrow,  and 
so  on  progressively.  All  this  seemed  very 
wonderful  to  me,  giving  the  impression  that 
I  had  been  a  skillful  plowman  all  my  life 
without  knowing  it.  It  was  interesting  work; 
and  I  was  also  amused  to  see  the  little  birds 
that  came  in  numbers  from  the  wood  to  devour 
the  worms  in  the  fresh-turned  mold;  for 
between  their  fear  of  me  and  their  desire  to 
get  the  worms,  they  were  in  a  highly  perplexed 
state,  and  generally  confined  their  operations 
to  one  end  of  the  furrow  while  I  was  away 


A  CRYSTAL  AGE  115 

at  the  other.  The  space  the  horses  had 
marked  out  for  themselves  was  plowed  up 
in  due  time,  whereupon  they  marched  off  and 
made  a  fresh  furrow  as  before,  where  there 
was  nothing  to  guide  them;  and  so  the  work 
went  on  agreeably  for  some  hours,  until  I  felt 
myself  growing  desperately  hungry.  Sitting 
down  on  the  beam  of  the  plow,  I  opened 
my  basket  and  discussed  the  homely  fare 
with  a  keen  appetite. 

After  finishing  the  food  I  resumed  work 
again,  but  not  as  cheerfully  as  at  first:  I 
began  to  feel  a  little  stiff  and  tired,  and  the 
immense  quantity  of  mold  adhering  to  my 
boots  made  it  heavy  walking;  moreover,  the 
novelty  had  now  worn  off.  The  horses  also 
did  not  work  as  smoothly  as  at  the  com- 
mencement: they  seemed  to  have  something 
on  their  minds,  for  at  the  end  of  every 
furrow  they  would  turn  and  stare  at  me  in 
the  most  exasperating  manner. 

"Phew!"  I  ejaculated,  as  I  stood  wiping 
the  honest  sweat  from  my  face  with  my 
moldy,  ancient,  and  extremely  dirty  pocket- 
handkerchief.      "Three    hundred    and    sixty- 


n6  A  CRYSTAL  AGE 

four  days  of  this  sort  of  thing  is  a  rather 
long  price  to  pay  for  a  suit  of  clothes." 

While  standing  there,  I  saw  an  animal 
coming  swiftly  towards  me  from  the  direction 
of  the  forest,  bounding  along  over  the  earth 
with  a  speed  like  that  of  a  greyhound — a 
huge,  fierce-looking  brute;  and  when  close 
to  me,  I  felt  convinced  that  it  was  an  animal 
of  the  same  kind  as  the  one  I  had  seen 
during  the  night.  Before  I  had  made  up 
my  mind  what  to  do,  he  was  within  a  few 
yards  of  me,  and  then,  coming  to  a  sudden 
halt,  he  sat  down  on  his  haunches,  and 
gravely  watched  me.  Calling  to  mind  some 
things  I  had  heard  about  the  terrifying  effect 
of  the  human  eye  on  royal  tigers  and  other 
savage  beasts,  I  gazed  steadily  at  him,  and 
then  almost  lost  my  fear  in  admiration  of  his 
beauty.  He  was  taller  than  a  boarhound, 
but  slender  in  figure,  with  keen,  fox-like 
features,  and  very  large,  erect  ears;  his  coat 
was  silvery-gray,  and  long;  there  were  two 
black  spots  above  his  eyes;  and  the  feet, 
muzzle,  ear-tips,  and  end  of  the  bushy  tail 
were   also   velvet-black.     After   watching  me 


A  CRYSTAL  AGE  117 

quietly  for  two  or  three  minutes,  he  started 
up,  and,  much  to  my  relief,  trotted  away 
towards  the  wood;  but  after  going  about 
fifty  yards  he  looked  back,  and  seeing  me 
still  gazing  after  him,  wheeled  round  and 
rushed  at  me,  and  when  quite  close  uttered 
a  sound  like  a  ringing,  metallic  yelp,  after 
which  he  once  more  bounded  away,  and 
disappeared  from  sight. 

The  horses  now  turned  round,  and,  deliber- 
ately walking  up  to  me,  stood  still,  in  spite 
of  all  I  could  do  to  make  them  continue  the 
work.  After  waiting  a  while  they  proceeded 
to  wriggle  themselves  out  of  the  ropes,  and 
galloped  off,  loudly  neighing  to  each  other, 
and  flinging  up  their  disdainful  heels  so  as  to 
send  a  shower  of  dirt  over  me.  Left  alone 
in  this  unceremonious  fashion,  I  presently 
began  to  think  that  they  knew  more  about 
the  work  than  I  did,  and  that,  finding  me 
indisposed  to  release  them  at  the  proper 
moment,  they  had  taken  the  matter  into 
their  own  hands,  or  hoofs  rather.  A  little 
more  pondering,  and  I  also  came  to  the 
conclusion  that  the  singular  wolf-like  animal 


n8  A  CRYSTAL  AGE 

was  only  one  of  the  house-dogs;  that  he  had 
visited  me  in  the  night  to  remind  me  that  I 
was  sleeping  with  the  door  open,  and  had 
come  now  to  insist  on  a  suspension  of  work. 
Glad  at  having  discovered  all  these  things 
without  displaying  my  ignorance  by  asking 
questions,  I  took  up  my  basket  and  started 
home. 


IX 


When  I  arrived  at  the  house  I  was  met  by 
the  young  man  who  had  set  me  the  morning's 
task;  but  he  was  taciturn  now,  and  wore  a 
cold,  estranged  look,  which  seemed  to  portend 
trouble.  He  at  once  led  me  to  a  part  of  the 
house  at  a  distance  from  the  hall,  and  into  a 
large  apartment  I  now  saw  for  the  first  time. 
In  a  few  moments  the  master  of  the  house, 
followed  by  most  of  the  other  inmates,  also 
entered,  and  on  the  faces  of  all  of  them  I 
noticed  the  same  cold,  offended  look. 

"The  dickens  take  my  luck!"  said  I  to 
myself,  beginning  to  feel  extremely  uncomfort- 
able. "I  suppose  I  have  offended  against  the 
laws  and  customs  by  working  the  horses  too 
long." 

"Smith,"  said  the  old  man,  advancing  to  the 
table,  and  depositing  thereon  a  large  volume 
he  had  brought  with  him,   "come  here,  and 
read  to  me  in  this  book." 
119 


120  A  CRYSTAL  AGE 

Advancing  to  the  table,  I  saw  that  it  was 
written  in  the  same  minute,  Hebrew-like 
characters  of  the  folio  I  had  examined  on  the 
previous  evening.  "I  cannot  read  it;  I  do 
not  understand  the  letters,"  I  said,  feeling 
some  shame  at  having  thus  publicly  to 
confess  my  ignorance. 

"Then,"  said  he,  bending  on  me  a  look  of 
the  utmost  severity,  "there  is  indeed  little 
more  to  be  said.  Nevertheless,  we  take  into 
account  the  confused  state  of  your  intellect 
yesterday,  and  judge  you  leniently;  and  let 
us  hope  that  the  pangs  of  an  outraged 
conscience  will  be  more  painful  to  you  than 
the  light  punishment  I  am  about  to  inflict  for 
so  detestable  a  crime." 

I  now  concluded  that  I  had  offended  by 
squeezing  Yoletta's  hand,  and  had  been  told 
to  read  from  the  book  merely  to  make  my- 
self acquainted  with  the  pains  and  penalties 
attendant  on  such  an  indiscretion,  for  to  call 
it  a  "detestable  crime"  seemed  to  me  a  very 
great  abuse  of  language. 

"If  I  have  offended,"  was  my  answer,  de- 
livered with  little  humility,  "I  can  only  plead 


A  CRYSTAL  AGE  121 

my  ignorance  of  the  customs  of  the  house." 
"No  man,"  he  returned,  with  increased 
severity,  "is  so  ignorant  as  not  to  know 
right  from  wrong.  Had  the  matter  come  to 
my  knowledge  sooner,  I  should  have  said: 
Depart  from  us,  for  your  continued  presence 
in  the  house  offends  us;  but  we  have  made 
a  compact  with  you,  and,  until  the  year 
expires,  we  must  suffer  you.  For  the  space 
of  sixty  days  you  must  dwell  apart  from  us, 
never  leaving  the  room,  where  each  day  a 
task  will  be  assigned  to  you,  and  subsisting 
on  bread  and  water  only.  Let  us  hope  that 
in  this  period  of  solitude  and  silence  you  will 
sufficiently  repent  your  crime,  and  rejoin  us 
afterwards  with  a  changed  heart;  for  all 
offenses  may  be  forgiven  a  man,  but  it  is 
impossible   to  forgive  a  lie." 

"A  lie!"  I  exclaimed  in  amazement.  "I 
have  told  no  lie!" 

"This,"  said  he,  with  an  access  of  wrath, 
"is  an  aggravation  of  your  former  offense. 
It  is  even  a  worse  offense  than  the  first,  and 
must  be  dealt  with  separately — when  the  sixty 
days  have  expired." 


122  A  CRYSTAL  AGE 

"Are  you,  then,  going  to  condemn  me  with- 
out hearing  me  speak,  or  telling  me  anything 
about  it4?     What  lie  have  I  told?" 

After  a  pause,  during  which  he  closely 
scrutinized  my  face,  he  said,  pointing  to  the 
open  page  before  him:  "Yesterday,  in  answer 
to  my  question,  you  told  me  that  you  could 
read.  Last  evening  you  made  a  contrary 
statement  to  Yoletta;  and  now  here  is  the 
book,  and  you  confess  that  you  cannot 
read  it." 

"But  that  is  easily  explained,"  said  I, 
immensely  relieved,  for  I  certainly  had  felt 
a  little  guilty  about  the  hand-squeezing 
performance,  although  it  was  not  a  very 
serious  matter.  "I  can  read  the  books  of 
my  own  country,  and  naturally  concluded 
that  your  books  were  written  in  the  same 
kind  of  letters;  but  last  evening  I  discovered 
that  it  was  not  so.  You  have  already  seen 
the  letters  of  my  country  on  the  coins  I 
showed  you  last  evening." 

And  here  I  again  pulled  out  my  pocket- 
book,  and  emptied  the  contents  on  the 
table. 


A  CRYSTAL  AGE  123 

He  began  to  pick  up  the  sovereigns  one 
by  one  to  examine  them.  Meanwhile,  find- 
ing my  beautiful  black  and  gold  stylograph 
pen  inserted  in  the  book,  I  thought  I  could 
not  do  better  than  to  show  him  how  I  wrote, 
Fortunately,  the  fluid  in  it  had  not  become 
dry.  Tearing  a  blank  page  from  my  book 
I  hastily  scribbled  a  few  lines,  and  handed 
the  paper  to  him,  saying:  "This  is  how  I 
write." 

He  began  studying  the  paper,  but  his  eyes, 
I  perceived,  wandered  often  to  the  stylograph 
pen  in  my  hand. 

Presently  he  remarked:  'This  writing,  or 
these  marks  you  have  made  on  the  paper, 
are  not  the  same  as  the  letters  on  the 
gold." 

I  took  the  paper  and  proceeded  to  copy  the 
sentence  I  had  written,  but  in  printing  letters, 
beneath  it,  then  returned  it  to  him. 

He  examined  it  again,  and,  after  comparing 
my  letters  with  those  on  the  sovereigns,  said: 
"Pray  tell  me,  now,  what  you  have  written 
here,  and  explain  why  you  write  in  two  different 
ways?" 


124  A  CRYSTAL  AGE 

I  told  him,  as  well  as  I  could,  why  letters 
of  one  form  were  used  to  stamp  on  gold  and 
other  substances,  and  of  a  different  form  for 
writing.  Then,  with  a  modest  blush,  I  read 
the  words  of  the  sentence:  "In  different  parts 
of  the  world  men  have  different  customs,  and 
write  different  letters;  but  alike  to  all  men 
in  all  places,  a  lie  is  hateful." 

"Smith,"  he  said,  addressing  me  in  an  im- 
pressive maner,  but  happily  not  to  charge  me 
with  a  third  and  bigger  lie,  "I  have  lived  long 
in  the  world,  and  the  knowledge  others  possess 
concerning  it  is  mine  also.  It  is  common 
knowledge  that  in  the  hotter  and  colder  regions 
men  are  compelled  to  live  differently,  owing 
to  the  conditions  they  are  placed  in;  but  we 
know  that  everywhere  they  have  the  same 
law  of  right  and  wrong  inscribed  on  the  heart, 
and,  as  you  have  said,  hate  a  lie;  also  that 
they  all  speak  the  same  language;  and  until 
this  moment  I  also  believed  that  they  wrote  in 
similar  characters.  You,  however,  have  now 
succeeded  in  convincing  me  that  this  is  not 
the  case;  that  in  some  obscure  valley,  cut  off 
from  all  intercourse  by  inaccessible  mountains, 


A  CRYSTAL  AGE  125 

or  in  some  small,  unknown  island  of  the  sea, 
a  people  may  exist — ah,  did  you  not  tell  me 
that  you  came  from  an  island4?" 

"Yes,  my  home  was  on  an  island,"  I 
answered. 

"So  I  imagined.  An  island  of  which  no 
report  has  ever  reached  us,  where  the  people, 
isolated  from  their  fellows,  have  in  the  course 
of  many  centuries  changed  their  customs — 
even  their  manner  of  writing.  Although  I  had 
seen  these  gold  pieces  I  did  not  understand, 
or  did  not  realize,  that  such  a  human  family 
existed:  now  I  am  persuaded  of  it,  and  as  I 
alone  am  to  blame  for  having  brought  this 
charge  against  you,  I  must  now  ask  your 
forgiveness.  We  rejoice  at  your  innocence, 
and  hope  with  increased  love  to  atone  for  our 
injustice.  My  son,"  he  concluded,  placing  a 
hand  on  my  shoulder,  "I  am  now  deeply  in 
your  debt." 

"I  am  glad  it  has  ended  so  happily,"  I 
replied,  wondering  whether  his  being  in  my 
debt  would  increase  my  chances  with  Yoletta 
or  not. 

Seeing  him  again  directing  curious  glances 


126  A  CRYSTAL  AGE 

at  the  stylograph,  which  I  was  turning  about 
in  my  fingers,  I  offered  it  to  him. 

He  examined  it  with  interest. 

"I  have  only  been  waiting  for  an  oppor- 
tunity," he  said,  "to  look  closely  at  this 
wonderful  contrivance,  for  I  had  perceived 
that  your  writing  was  not  made  with  a  pencil, 
but  with  a  fluid.  It  is  black  polished  stone, 
beautifully  fashioned  and  encircled  with  gold 
bands,  and  contains  the  writing-fluid  within 
itself.  This  surprises  me  as  much  as  anything 
you  have  told  me." 

"Allow  me  to  make  you  a  present  of  it,"  said 
I,  seeing  him  so  taken  with  it. 

"No,  not  so,"  he  returned.  "But  I  should 
greatly  like  to  possess  it,  and  will  keep  it  if 
I  may  bestow  in  return  something  you  desire." 

Yoletta's  hand  was  really  the  only  thing  in 
life  I  desired,  but  it  was  too  early  to  speak 
yet,  as  I  knew  nothing  about  their  matrimonial 
usages — not  even  whether  or  not  the  lady's 
consent  was  necessary  to  a  compact  of  the 
kind.  I  therefore  made  a  more  modest  request. 
"There  is  one  thing  I  greatly  desire,"  I  said. 
"I  am  very  anxious  to  be  able  to  read  in  your 


A  CRYSTAL  AGE  127 

books,  and  shall  consider  myself  more  than 
compensated  if  you  will  permit  Yoletta  to  teach 
me." 

"She  shall  teach  you  in  any  case,  my  son," 


he  returned.  "That,"  and  mucftmore,  is  already 
owing  to  you." 

"There  is  nothing  else  I  desire,"  said  I. 
"Pray  keep  the  pen  and  make  me  happy." 

And  thus  ended  a  disagreeable  matter. 

The  cloud  having  blown  over,  we  all  repaired 
to  the  supper-room,  and  nothing  could  exceed 
our  happiness  as  we  sat  at  meat — or  vegetables. 
Not  feeling  so  ravenously  hungry  as  on  the 
previous  evening,  and,  moreover,  seeing  them 
all  in  so  lively  a  mood,  I  did  not  hesitate  to 
join  in  the  conversation:  nor  did  I  succeed 
so  very  badly,  considering  the  strangeness  of 
it  all;  for  like  the  bee  that  has  been  much 
hindered  at  his  flowery  work  by  geometric 
webs,  I  began  to  acquire  some  skill  in  push- 
ing my  way  gracefully  through  the  tangling 
meshes  of  thought  and  phrases  that  were  new 
to  me. 

The   afternoon's  experiences  had    certainly 


128  A  CRYSTAL  AGE 

been  remarkable — a  strange  mixture  of  pain 
and  pleasure,  not  blending  into  homogeneous 
gray,  but  resembling  rather  a  bright  embroidery 
on  a  dark,  somber  ground;  and  of  these  sur- 
prising contrasts  I  was  destined  to  have  more 
that  same  evening. 

We  were  again  assembled  in  the  great  room, 
the  venerable  father  reclining  at  his  ease  on 
his  throne-like  couch  near  the  brass  globes, 
while  the  others  pursued  their  various  occupa- 
tions as  on  the  former  evening.  Not  being 
able  to  get  near  Yoletta,  and  having  nothing 
to  do,  I  settled  myself  comfortably  in  one  of 
the  spacious  seats,  and  gave  up  my  mind  to 
pleasant  dreams.  At  length,  to  my  surprise, 
the  father,  who  had  been  regarding  me 
for  some  time,  said:  "Will  you  lead,  my 
son?" 

I  started  up,  turning  very  red  in  the  face, 
for  I  did  not  wish  to  trouble  him  with  questions, 
yet  was  at  a  loss  to  know  what  he  meant  by 
leading.  I  thought  of  several  things — whist, 
evening  prayers,  dancing,  etc.;  but  being  still 
in  doubt,  I  was  compelled  to  ask  him  to 
explain. 


A  CRYSTAL  AGE  129 

"Will  you  lead  the  singing?"  he  returned, 
looking  a  little  surprised. 

"Oh   yes,    with   pleasure,"    said  I.      There 
being  no  music  about,  and  no  piano,  I  con- 
cluded naturally  that  my  friends  amused  them- 
selves with  solo  songs  without  accompaniment 
of  an  evening,  and  having  a  good  tenor  voice 
I  was  not  unwilling  to  lead  off  with  a  song. 
Clearing  my   rusty   throat  with   a   ghrr-ghrr- 
hram  which  made  them  all  jump,  I  launched 
forth  with  the  "Vicar  of  Bray"— a  grand  old 
song   and   a  great   favorite   of  mine.      They 
all    started    when    I   commenced,    exchanging 
glances,  and  casting  astonished  looks  towards 
me;  but  it  was  getting  so  dusky  in  the  room 
that  I  could  not  feel  sure  that  my  eyes  were 
not  deceiving  me.     Presently   some  that  were 
near  me  began  retiring  to  distant  seats,  and 
this  distressed  me  so  that  it  made  me  hoarse, 
and  my  singing  became  very  bad  indeed;  but 
still  I  thought  it  best  to  go  bravely  on  to  the 
end.     Suddenly  the  old  gentleman,  who  had 
been  staring  wildly  at  me  for  some  time,  drew 
up  his  long  yellow  robe  and  wrapped  it  round 
his   face   and   head.      I   glanced   at   Yoletta, 


130  A  CRYSTAL  AGE 

sitting   at   some   distance,    and   saw   that   she 
was  holding  her  hands  pressed  to  her  ears. 

I  thought  it  about  time  to  leave  off  then, 
and  stopping  abruptly  in  the  middle  of  the 
fourth  stanza  I  sat  down,  feeling  extremely- 
hot  and  uncomfortable.  I  was  almost  choking, 
and  unable  to  utter  a  word.  But  there  was 
no  word  for  me  to  utter :  it  was,  of  course,  for 
them  to  thank  me  for  singing,  or  to  say  some- 
thing; but  not  a  word  was  spoken.  Yoletta 
dropped  her  hands  and  resumed  her  work, 
while  the  old  man  slowly  emerged  with  a 
somewhat  frightened  look  from  the  wrappings; 
and  then  the  long  dead  silence  becoming 
unendurable,  I  remarked  that  I  feared  my  sing- 
ing was  not  to  their  taste.  No  reply  was 
made;  only  the  father,  putting  out  one  of  his 
hands,  touched  a  handle  or  key  near  him, 
whereupon  one  of  the  brass  globes  began 
slowly  revolving.  A  low  murmur  of  sound 
arose,  and  seemed  to  pass  like  a  wave 
through  the  room,  dying  away  in  the 
distance,  soon  to  be  succeeded  by  another, 
and  then  another,  each  marked  by  an  increase 
of  power;   and  often   as   this  solemn    sound 


A  CRYSTAL  AGE  131 

died  away,  faint  flute-like  notes  were  heard 
as  if  approaching,  but  still  at  a  great  distance, 
and  in  the  ensuing  wave  of  sound  from  the 
great  globes  they  would  cease  to  be  dis- 
tinguishable. Still  the  mysterious  coming 
sounds  continued  at  intervals  to  grow  louder 
and  clearer,  joined  by  other  tones  as  they 
progressed,  now  altogether  bursting  out  in 
joyous  chorus,  then  one  purest  liquid  note 
soaring  bird-like  alone,  but  whether  from 
voices  or  wind-instruments  I  was  unable  to 
tell,  until  the  whole  air  about  me  was  filled 
and  palpitating  with  the  strange,  exquisite 
harmony,  which  passed  onwards,  the  tones 
growing  fewer  and  fainter  by  degrees  until 
they  almost  died  out  of  hearing  in  the 
opposite  direction.  That  all  were  now  taking 
part  in  the  performance  I  became  convinced 
by  watching  in  turn  different  individuals, 
some  of  them  having  small,  curiously-shaped 
instruments  in  their  hands,  but  there  was  a 
blending  of  voices  and  a  something  like 
ventriloquism  in  the  tones  which  made  it 
impossible  to  distinguish  the  notes  of  any 
one    person.      Deeper,    more    sonorous    tones 


132  A  CRYSTAL  AGE 

now  issued  from  the  revolving  globes,  some- 
times resembling  in  character  the  vox  humana 
of  an  organ,  and  every  time  they  rose  to  a 
certain  pitch  there  were  responsive  sounds — 
not  certainly  from  any  of  the  performers — 
low,  tremulous,  and  ^Eolian  in  character, 
wandering  over  the  entire  room,  as  if  walls 
and  ceiling  were  honey-combed  with  sensi- 
tive musical  cells,  answering  to  the  deeper 
vibrations.  These  floating  aerial  sounds  also 
answered  to  the  higher  notes  of  some  of 
the  female  singers,  resembling  soprano  voices, 
brightened  and  spiritualized  in  a  wonderful 
degree;  and  then  the  wide  room  would  be 
filled  with  a  mist,  as  it  were,  of  this  floating, 
formless  melody,  which  seemed  to  come  from 
invisible  harpers  hovering  in  the  shadows 
above. 

Lying  back  on  my  couch,  listening  with 
closed  eyes  to  this  mysterious,  soul-stirring 
concert,  I  was  affected  to  tears,  and  almost 
feared  that  I  had  been  snatched  away  into 
some  supra-mundane  region  inhabited  by 
beings  of  an  angelic  or  half-angelic  order — 
feared,  I  say,  for,  with  this  new  love  in  my 


A  CRYSTAL  AGE  133 

heart,  no  elysium  or  starry  abode  could  com- 
pare with  this  green  earth  for  a  dwelling- 
place.  But  when  I  remembered  my  own 
brutal  bull  of  Bashan  performance,  my  face, 
there  in  the  dark,  was  on  fire  with  shame; 
and  I  cursed  the  ignorant,  presumptuous  folly 
I  had  been  guilty  of  in  roaring  out  that 
abominable  "Vicar  of  Bray"  ballad,  which 
had  now  become  as  hateful  to  me  as  my 
trousers  or  boots.  The  composer  of  that 
song,  the  writer  of  the  words,  and  its  subject, 
the  double-faced  Vicar  himself,  presented 
themselves  to  my  mind  as  the  three  most 
damnable  beings  that  had  ever  existed.  "The 
devil  take  my  luck!"  I  muttered,  grinding  my 
teeth  with  impotent  anger;  for  it  seemed  such 
hard  lines,  just  when  I  had  succeeded  in 
getting  into  favor,  to  go  and  spoil  it  all  in 
that  unhappy  way.  Now  that  I  had  become 
acquainted  with  their  style  of  singing,  the 
supposed  fib,  about  which  there  had  been 
such  a  pother,  seemed  a  very  venial  offense 
compared  with  my  attempt  to  lead  the  sing- 
ing. Nevertheless,  when  the  concert  was 
over,  not  a  word  was   said  on  the  subject  by 


134  A  CRYSTAL  AGE 

any  one,  though  I  had  quite  expected  to  be 
taken  at  once  to  the  magisterial  chamber  do 
hear  some  dreadful  sentence  passed  on  me ;  and 
when,  before  retiring,  anxious  to  propitiate  my 
host,  I  began  to  express  regret  for  having  in- 
flicted pain  on  them  by  attempting  to  sing,  the 
venerable  gentleman  raised  his  hands  deprecat- 
ingly,  and  begged  me  to  say  no  more  about  it, 
for  painful  subjects  were  best  forgotten.  "No 
doubt,"  he  kindly  added,  "when  you  were  lying 
there  buried  among  the  hills,  you  swallowed  a 
large  amount  of  earth  and  gravel  in  your  ef- 
forts to  breathe,  and  have  not  yet  freed  your 
lungs  from  it." 

This  was  the  most  charitable  view  he  could 
take  of  the  matter,  and  I  was  thankful  that  no 
worse  result  followed. 


At  length  the  joyful  day  arrived  when  I  was 
to  cease,  in  outward  appearance  at  all  events, 
to  be  an  alien;  for  returning  at  noon  from 
the  fields,  on  entering  my  cell  I  beheld  my 
beautiful  new  garments — two  complete  suits, 
besides  underwear:  one,  the  most  soberly 
colored,  intended  only  for  working  hours; 
but  the  second,  which  was  for  the  house, 
claimed  my  first  attention.  Trembling  with 
eagerness,  I  flung  off  the  old  tweeds,  the 
cracked  boots,  and  other  vestiges  of  a  civiliza- 
tion which  they  had  perhaps  survived,  and 
soon  found  that  I  had  been  measured  with 
faultless  accuracy;  for  everything,  down  to 
the  shoes,  fitted  to  perfection.  Green  was 
the  prevailing  or  ground  tint — a  soft  sap 
green;  the  pattern  on  it,  which  was  very 
beautiful,  being  a  somewhat  obscure  red, 
inclining  to  purple.  My  delight  culminated 
135 


136  A  CRYSTAL  AGE 

when  I  drew  on  the  hose,  which  had,  like  those 
worn  by  the  others,  a  curious  design,  evidently 
borrowed  from  the  skin  of  some  kind  of  snake. 
The  ground  color  was  light  green,  almost  citron 
yellow,  in  fact,  and  the  pattern  a  bright  maroon 
red,  with  bronze  reflections. 

I  had  no  sooner  arrayed  myself  than,  with 
a  flushed  face  and  palpitating  heart,  I  flew  to 
exhibit  myself  to  my  friends,  and  found  them 
assembled  and  waiting  to  see  and  admire  the 
result  of  their  work.  The  pleasure  I  saw  re- 
flected in  their  transparent  faces  increased  my 
happiness  a  hundredfold,  and  I  quite  astonished 
them  with  the  torrent  of  eloquence  in  which  I 
expressed  my  overflowing  gratitude. 

"Now,  tell  me  one  secret,"  I  exclaimed,  when 
the  excitement  began  to  abate  a  little.  "Why  is 
green  the  principal  color  in  my  clothes,  when 
no  other  person  in  the  house  wears  more  than 
a  very  little  of  it?" 

I  had  no  sooner  spoken  than  I  heartily  wished 
that  I  had  held  my  peace;  for  it  all  at  once 
occurred  to  me  that  green  was  perhaps  the  color 
for  an  alien  or  mere  hireling,  in  which  light 
they  perhaps  regarded  me. 


A  CRYSTAL  AGE  137 

"Oh,  Smith,  can  you  not  guess  so  simple 
a  thing?"  said  Edra,  placing  her  white  hands 
on  my  shoulders  and  smiling  straight  into  my 
face. 

How  beautiful  she  looked,  standing  there 
with  her  eyes  so  near  to  mine!  "Tell  me 
why,  Edra?"  I  said,  still  with  a  lingering 
apprehension. 

"Why,  look  at  the  color  of  my  eyes  and 
skin — would  this  green  tint  be  suitable  for  me 
to  wear?" 

"Oh,  is  that  the  reason!"  cried  I,  immensely 
relieved.  "I  think,  Edra,  you  would  look 
very  beautiful  in  any  color  that  is  on  the  earth, 
or  in  the  rainbow  above  the  earth.  But  am  I 
so  different  from  you  all?" 

"Oh  yes,  quite  different — have  you  never 
looked  at  yourself?  Your  skin  is  whiter  and 
redder,  and  your  hair  has  a  very  different 
color.  It  will  look  better  when  it  grows 
long,  I  think.  And  your  eyes — do  you  know 
that  they  never  change!  for  when  we  look 
at  you  closely  they  are  still  blue-gray,  and  not 
green." 

"No;  I  wish  they  were,"  said    I.     "Now 


138  A  CRYSTAL  AGE 

I  shall  value  my  clothes  a  hundred  times 
more,  since  you  have  taken  so  much  pains 
to  make  them — well,  what  shall  I  say1? — 
harmonize,  I  suppose,  with  the  peculiar 
color  of  my  mug.  Dash  it  all,  I'm  blunder- 
ing again!  I  mean — I  mean — don't  you 
know " 

Edra  laughed  and  gave  it  up.  Then  we 
all  laughed;  for  now  evidently  my  blunder- 
ing did  not  so  much  matter,  since  I  had  shed 
my  outer  integument,  and  come  forth  like  a 
snake  (with  a  divided  tail)  in  a  brand  new 
skin. 

Presently  I  missed  Yoletta  from  the  room, 
and  desiring  above  all  things  to  have  some 
word  of  congratulation  from  her  lips,  I  went 
off  to  seek  her.  She  was  standing  under 
the  portico  waiting  for  me.  "Come,"  she 
said,  and  proceeded  to  lead  me  into  the 
music-room,  where  we  sat  down  on  one  of  the 
couches  close  to  the  dai's;  there  she  produced 
some  large  white  tablets,  and  red  chalk  pencils 
or  crayons. 

"Now,  Smith,  I  am  going  to  begin  teach- 
ing you,"  said  she,  with  the  grave  air   of  a 


A  CRYSTAL  AGE  139 

young  schoolmistress;  "and  every  afternoon, 
when  your  work  is  done,  you  must  come  to 
me  here." 

"I  hope  I  am  very  stupid,  and  that  it  will 
take  me  a  long  time  to  learn,"  said  I. 

"Oh" — she  laughed — "do  you  think  it  will 
be  so  pleasant  sitting  by  me  here?  I  am  glad 
you  think  that;  but  if  you  prefer  me  for  a 
teacher  you  must  not  try  to  be  stupid,  because 
if  you  do  I  shall  ask  some  one  else  to  take 
my  place." 

"Would  you  really  do  that,  Yoletta?" 
"Yes.  Shall  I  tell  you  why?  Because 
I  have  a  quick,  impatient  temper.  Every- 
thing wrong  I  have  ever  done,  for  which 
I  have  been  punished,  has  been  through  my 
hasty  temper." 

"And  have  you  ever  undergone  that  sad  pun- 
ishment of  being  shut  up  by  yourself  for  many 
days,  Yoletta?" 

"Yes,  often;  for  what  other  punishment  is/ 
there?     But  oh,  I  hope  it  will  never  happen! 
again,  because  I  think — I  know  that  I  suffer 
more  than  any  one  can  imagine.     To  tread 
on  the  grass,  to  feel  the  sun  and  wind  on  my 


HO  A  CRYSTAL  AGE 

face,  to  see  the  earth  and  sky  and  animals — 
this  is  like  life  to  me;  and  when  I  am  shut 
up  alone,  every  day  seems — oh,  a  year  at 
least!"  She  did  not  know  how  much  dearer 
this  confession  of  one  little  human  weakness 
made  her  seem  to  me.  "Come,  let  us  begin," 
she  said.  "I  waited  for  your  new  clothes 
to  be  finished,  and  we  must  make  up  for  lost 
time." 

"But  do  you  know,  Yoletta,  that  you  have 
not  said  anything  about  them?  Do  I  look 
nice;  and  will  you  like  me  any  better  now*?" 

"Yes,  much  better.  You  were  a  poor 
caterpillar  before;  I  liked  you  a  little  because 
I  knew  what  a  pretty  butterfly  you  would  be 
in  time.  I  helped  to  make  your  wings.  Now, 
listen." 

For  two  hours  she  taught  me,  making  her 
red  letters  or  marks,  which  I  copied  on  my 
tablet,  and  explaining  them  to  me;  and  at  the 
conclusion  of  the  lesson,  I  had  got  a  general 
idea  that  the  writing  was  to  a  great  extent 
phonographic,  and  that  I  was  in  for  rather  a 
tough  job. 

"Do  you  think  that  you  will  be  able  to  teach 


A  CRYSTAL  AGE  141 

me  to  sing  also*?"  I  asked,  when  she  had  put 
the  tablets  aside. 

The  memory  of  that  miserable  failure,  when 
I  "had  led  the  singing,"  was  a  constant  sore 
in  my  mind.  I  had  begun  to  think  that  I  had 
not  done  myself  justice  on  that  memorable 
occasion,  and  the  desire  to  make  another 
trial  under  more  favorable  circumstances  was 
very  strong  in  me. 

She  looked  a  little  startled  at  my  question, 
but  said  nothing. 

"I  know  now,"  I  continued  pleadingly, 
"that  you  all  sing  softly.  If  you  will  only 
consent  to  try  me  once  I  promise  to  stick  like 
cobbler's  wax — I  beg  your  pardon,  I  mean  I 
will  endeavor  to  adhere  to  the  morendo  and 
fierdendosi  style — don't  you  know"?  What  am 
I  saying!  But  I  promise  you,  Yoletta,  I  shan't 
frighten  you,  if  you  will  only  let  me  try  and 
sing  to  you  once." 

She  turned  from  me  with  a  somewhat 
clouded  expression  of  face,  and  walked  with 
slow  steps  to  the  dais,  and  placing  her  hands 
on  the  keys,  caused  two  of  the  small  globes  to 


142  A  CRYSTAL  AGE 

revolve,  sending  soft  waves  of  sound  through 
the  room. 

I  advanced  towards  her,  but  she  raised 
her  hand  apprehensively.  "No,  no,  no;  stand 
there,"  she  said,  "and  sing  low." 

It  was  hard  to  see  her  troubled  face  and 
obey,  but  I  was  not  going  to  bellow  at  her 
like  a  bull,  and  I  had  set  my  heart  on  this 
trial.  For  the  last  three  days,  while  working 
in  the  fields,  I  had  been  incessantly  practic- 
ing my  dear  old  master  Campana's  exquisite 
M'appar  sulla  tomba,  the  only  melody  I 
happened  to  know  which  had  any  resemblance 
to  their  divine  music.  To  my  surprise  she 
seemed  to  play  as  I  sang  a  suitable  accom- 
paniment on  the  globes,  which  aided  and 
encouraged  me,  and,  although  singing  in  a  sub- 
dued tone,  I  felt  that  I  had  never  sung  so  well 
before.  When  I  finished,  I  quite  expected  some 
word  of  praise,  or  to  be  asked  why  I  had  not 
sung  this  melody  on  that  unhappy  evening 
when  I  was  asked  to  lead;  but  she  spoke  no 
word. 

"Will  you  sing  something  now*?"  I  said. 

"Not     now — this     evening,"     she     replied 


A  CRYSTAL  AGE  143 

absently,  slowly  walking  across  the  floor  with 
eyes  cast  down. 

"What  are  you  thinking  of,  Yoletta,  that 
you  look  so  serious"?"  I  asked. 

"Nothing,"  she  returned,  a  little  impatiently. 

"You  look  very  solemn  about  nothing,  then. 
But  you  have  not  said  one  word  about  my 
singing — did  you  not  like  it?" 

"Your  singing?  Oh  no!  It  was  a  pleasant- 
tasting  little  kernel  in  a  very  rough  rind — I 
should  like  one  without  the  other." 

"You  talk  in  riddles,  Yoletta;  but  I'm 
afraid  the  answers  to  them  would  not  sound 
very  flattering  to  me.  But  if  you  would  like 
to  know  the  song  I  shall  be  only  too  glad  to 
teach  it  to  you.  The  words  are  in  Italian,  but 
I  can  translate  them." 

"The  words'?"  she  said  absently. 

"The  words  of  the  song,"  I  said. 

"I  do  not  know  what  you  mean  by  the 
words  of  a  song.  Do  not  speak  to  me  now, 
Smith." 

"Oh,  very  well,"  said  I,  thinking  it  all  very 
strange,  and  sitting  down  I  divided  my  attention 
between  my  beautiful  hose  and  Yoletta,  still 


144  A  CRYSTAL  AGE 

slowly  pacing  the  floor  with  that  absent  look 
on  her  face. 

At  length  the  curious  mood  changed,  but  I 
did  not  venture  to  talk  any  more  about  music, 
and  before  very  long  we  repaired  to  the  eating- 
room,  where,  for  the  next  two  or  three  hours, 
we  occupied  ourselves  very  agreeably  with 
those  processes  which,  some  new  theorist 
informs  us,  constitute  our  chief  pleasure  in 
life. 

That  evening  I  overheard  a  curious  little 
dialogue.  The  father  of  the  house,  as  I  had 
now  grown  accustomed  to  call  our  head, 
after  rising  from  his  seat,  stood  for  a  few 
minutes  talking  near  me,  while  Yoletta,  with 
her  hand  on  his  arm,  waited  for  him  to 
finish.  When  he  had  done  speaking,  and 
turned  to  her,  she  said  in  a  low  voice,  which 
I,  however,  overheard:  "Father,  I  shall  lead 
to-night." 

He  put  his  hand  on  her  head,  and,  looking 
down,  studied  her  upturned  face.  "Ah,  my 
daughter,"  he  said  with  a  smile,  "shall  I  guess 
what  has  inspired  you  to-day?  You  have 
been  listening  to  the  passage  birds.     I  also 


A  CRYSTAL  AGE  145 

heard  them  this  morning  passing  in  flocks. 
And  you  have  been  following  them  in  thought 
far  away  into  those  sun-bright  lands  where 
winter  never  comes." 

"No,  father,"  she  returned,  "I  have  only 
been  a  little  way  from  home  in  thought — 
only  to  that  spot  where  the  grass  has  not 
yet  grown  to  hide  the  ashes  and  loose 
mold." 

He  stooped  and  kissed  her  forehead,  and 
then  left  the  room;  and  she,  never  noticing  the 
hungry  look  with  which  I  witnessed  the  tender 
caress,  also  went  away. 

That  some  person  was  supposed  to  lead 
the  singing  every  evening  I  knew,  but  it  was 
impossible  for  me  ever  to  discover  who  the 
leader  was;  now,  however,  after  over-hearing 
this  conversation,  I  knew  that  on  this  particular 
occasion  it  would  be  Yoletta,  and  in  spite  of 
the  very  poor  opinion  she  had  expressed  of 
my  musical  abilities,  I  was  prepared  to  admire 
the  performance  more  than  I  had  ever  done 
before. 

It  commenced  in  the  usual  mysterious  and 
indefinable  manner;  but  after  a  time,   when 


146  A  CRYSTAL  AGE 

it  began  to  shape  itself  into  melodies,  the 
idea  possessed  me  that  I  was  listening  to 
strains  once   familiar,  but  long    unheard  and 


■& 


forgotten.  At  length  I  discovered  that  this 
was  Campana's  music,  only  not  as  I  had  ever 
heard  it  sung;  for  the  melody  of  M'appar 
sulla  tomba  had  been  so  transmuted  and 
etherealized,  as  it  were,  that  the  composer 
himself  would  have  listened  in  wondering 
ecstasy  to  the  mournful  strains,  which  had 
passed  through  the  alembic  of  their  more 
delicately  organized  minds.  Listening,  I 
remembered  with  an  unaccountable  feeling 
of  sadness,  that  poor  Campana  had  recently 
died  in  London;  and  almost  at  the  same 
moment  there  came  to  me  a  remembrance 
of  my  beloved  mother,  whose  early  death 
was  my  first  great  grief  in  boyhood.  All 
the  songs  I  had  ever  heard  her  sing  came 
back  to  me,  ringing  in  my  mind  with  a 
wonderful  joy,  but  ever  ending  in  a  strange, 
funereal  sadness.  And  not  only  my  mother, 
but  many  a  dear  one  besides  returned  "in 
beauty  from  the  dust"  appeared  to  be 
present — white-haired     old     men     who     had 


A  CRYSTAL  AGE  147 

spoken  treasured  words  to  me  in  bygone 
years;  schoolfellows  and  other  boyish  friends 
and  companions;  and  men,  too,  in  the  prime 
of  life,  of  whose  premature  death  in  this  or 
that  far-off  region  of  the  world-wide  English 
empire  I  had  heard  from  time  to  time.  They 
came  back  to  me,  until  the  whole  room 
seemed  filled  with  a  pale,  shadowy  proces- 
sion, moving  past  me  to  the  sound  of  that 
mysterious  melody.  Through  all  the  evening 
it  came  back,  in  a  hundred  bewildering 
disguises,  filling  me  with  a  melancholy 
infinitely  precious,  which  was  yet  almost 
more  than  my  heart  could  bear.  Again 
and  yet  again  that  despairing  Ah-i-me  fell 
like  a  long  shuddering  sob  from  the  revolv- 
ing globes,  and  from  voices  far  and  near,  to 
be  taken  up  and  borne  yet  further  away  by 
far-off,  dying  sounds,  yet  again  responded  to 
by  nearer,  clearer  voices,  in  tones  which 
seemed  wrung  "from  the  depths  of  some 
divine  despair";  then  to  pass  away,  but  not 
wholly  pass,  for  all  the  hidden  cells  were 
stirred,  and  the  vibrating  air,  like  mysterious, 
invisible  hands,  swept  the  suspended  strings, 


148  A  CRYSTAL  AGE 

until  the  exquisite  bliss  and  pain  of  it  made 
me  tremble  and  shed  tears,  as  I  sat  there  in  the 
dark,  wondering,  as  men  will  wonder  at  such 
moments,  what  this  tempest  of  the  soul  which 
music  wakes  in  us  can  mean:  whether  it  is 
merely  a  growth  of  this  our  earth-life,  or  a 
something  added,  a  divine  hunger  of  the  heart 
which  is  part  of  our  immortality. 


XI 


It  seemed  to  me  now  that  I  had  never  really 
lived  before,  so  sweet  was   this  new  life— so 
healthy,  and  free  from  care  and  regret.     The 
old  life,  which  I  had  lived  in  cities,  was  less 
in  my  thoughts  on  each  succeeding  day;    it 
came    to    me    now    like    the    memory    of    a 
repulsive  dream,  which  I  was  only  too  glad 
to  forget.     How  I  had  ever   found  that  list- 
less, worn-out,  luxurious,  do-nothing  existence 
endurable,    seemed    a    greater   mystery   every 
morning,  when  I  went  forth  to  my  appointed 
task  in  the  fields  or  the  workhouse,  so  natural 
and   so  pleasant   did   it   now   seem   to   labor 
with  my   own  hands,   and   to  eat  my  bread 
m  the  sweat  of  my  face.      If  there  was  one 
kind  of  work  I  preferred  above  all  others,  it 
was   wood-cutting,    and   as   a   great   deal    of 
timber   was    required   at   this   season,    I    was 
allowed  to   follow  my  own   inclination.     In 
149 


150  A  CRYSTAL  AGE 

the  forest,  a  couple  of  miles  from  the  house, 
several  tough  old  giants — chiefly  oak,  chest- 
nut, elm,  and  beech — had  been  marked  out 
for  destruction:  in  some  cases  because  they 
had  been  scorched  and  riven  by  lightnings, 
and  were  an  eyesore;  in  others,  because  time 
had  robbed  them  of  their  glory,  withering  their 
long,  desolate  arms,  and  bestowing  on  their 
crowns  that  lusterless,  scanty  foliage  which 
has  a  mournful  meaning,  like  the  thin  white 
hairs  on  the  bowed  head  of  a  very  old  man. 
At  this  distance  from  the  house  I  could 
freely  indulge  my  propensity  for  singing, 
albeit  in  that  coarser  tone  which  had  failed 
to  win  favor  with  my  new  friends.  Among 
the  grand  trees,  out  of  earshot  of  them  all, 
I  could  shout  aloud  to  my  heart's  content, 
rejoicing  in  the  boisterous  old  English  ballads, 
which,  like  John  Peek's  view-hallo, 

"Might  awaken  the  dead 
Or  the  fox  from  his  lair  in  the  morning." 

Meanwhile,  with  the  frantic  energy  of  a 
Gladstone  out  of  office,  I  plied  my  ax,  its 
echoing  strokes  making  fit  accompaniment  to 
my  strains,  until  for  many  yards  about  me  the 


A  CRYSTAL  AGE  151 

ground  was  littered  with  white  and  yellow 
chips;  then,  exhausted  with  my  efforts,  I 
would  sit  down  to  rest  and  eat  my  simple  mid- 
day fare,  to  admire  myself  in  my  deep-green 
and  chocolate  working-dress,  and,  above  every- 
thing, to  think  and  dream  of  Yoletta. 

In  my  walks  to  and  from  the  forest  I  cast 
many  a  wistful  look  at  a  solitary  flat-topped 
hill,  almost  a  mountain  in  height,  which  stood 
two  or  three  miles  from  the  house,  north  of 
it,  on  the  other  side  of  the  river.  From  its 
summit  I  felt  sure  that  a  very  extensive  view 
of  the  surrounding  country  might  be  had, 
and  I  often  wished  to  pay  this  hill  a  visit. 
One  afternoon,  while  taking  my  lesson  in 
reading,  I  mentioned  this  desire  to  Yoletta. 

"Come,  then,  let  us  go  there  now,"  said  she, 
laying  the  tablets  aside. 

I  j  oyf ully  agreed :  I  had  never  walked  alone 
with  her,  nor,  in  fact,  with  her  at  all,  since 
that  first  day  when  she  had  placed  her  hand 
in  mine;  and  now  we  were  so  much  nearer  in 
heart  to  each  other. 

She  led  me  to  a  point,  half  a  mile  from  the 


152  A  CRYSTAL  AGE 

house,  where  the  stream  rushed  noisily  over 
its  stony  bed  and  formed  numerous  deep 
channels  between  the  rocks,  and  one  could 
cross  over  by  jumping  from  rock  to  rock. 
Yoletta  led  the  way,  leaping  airily  from 
stone  to  stone,  while  I,  anxious  to  escape  a 
wetting,  followed  her  with  caution;  but  when 
I  was  safe  over,  and  thought  our  delightful 
walk  was  about  to  begin,  she  suddenly  started 
off  towards  the  hill  at  a  swift  pace,  which 
quickly  left  me  far  behind.  Finding  that  I 
could  not  overtake  her,  I  shouted  to  her  to 
wait  for  me;  then  she  stood  still  until  I  was 
within  three  or  four  yards  of  her,  when  off 
she  fled  like  the  wind  once  more.  At  length 
she  reached  the  foot  of  the  hill,  and  sat  down 
there  until  I  joined  her. 

"For  goodness  sake,  Yoletta,  let  us  behave 
like  rational  beings  and  walk  quietly,"  I  was 
beginning,  when  away  she  went  again,  dancing 
up  the  mountain-side  with  a  tireless  energy  that 
amazed  as  well  as  exasperated  me.  "Wait  for 
me  just  once  more,"  I  screamed  after  her;  then, 
half-way  up  the  side,  she  stopped  and  sat  down 
on  a  stone. 


A  CRYSTAL  AGE  153 

"Now  my  chance  has  come,"  thought  I,  ready 
to  make  up  for  insufficient  speed  and  wind  by 
superior  cunning,  which  would  make  us  equal. 
"I  will  go  quietly  up  and  catch  her  napping, 
and  hold  her  fast  by  the  arm  until  the  walk  is 
finished.  So  far  it  has  been  nothing  but  a  mad 
chase." 

Slowly  I  toiled  on,  and  then,  when  I  got 
near  her  and  was  just  about  to  execute  my 
plan,  she  started  nimbly  away,  with  a  merry 
laugh,  and  never  paused  again  until  the 
summit  was  reached.  Thoroughly  tired  and 
beaten,  I  sat  down  to  rest;  but  presently 
looking  up  I  saw  her  at  the  top,  standing 
motionless  on  a  stone,  looking  like  a  statue 
outlined  against  the  clear  blue  sky.  Once  more 
I  got  up  and  pressed  on  until  I  reached  her, 
and  then  sank  down  on  the  grass,  overcome 
with  fatigue. 

"When  you  ask  me  to  walk  again,  Yoletta," 
I  panted,  "I  shall  not  move  unless  I  have  a 
rope  round  your  waist  to  pull  you  back  when 
you  try  to  rush  off  in  that  mad  fashion.  You 
have  knocked  all  the  wind  out  of  me;  and  yet 
I  was  in  pretty  good  trim." 


154  A  CRYSTAL  AGE 

She  laughed,  and  jumping  to  the  ground,  sat 
down  at  my  side  on  the  grass. 

I  caught  her  hand  and  held  it  tight.  "Now 
you  shall  not  escape  and  run  away  again," 
said  I.  „ 

"You  may  keep  my  hand,"  she  replied;  "it 
has  nothing  to  do  up  here." 

"May  I  put  it  to  some  useful  purpose — may 
I  do  what  I  like  with  it1?" 

"Yes,  you  may,"  then  she  added  with  a 
smile :    "There  is  no  thorn  in  it  now." 

I  kissed  it  many  times  on  the  back,  the  palm, 
the  wrist,  then  bestowed  a  separate  caress  on 
each  finger-tip. 

"Why  do  you  kiss  my  hand?"  she  asked. 

"Do  you  not  know — can  you  not  guess? 
Because  it  is  the  sweetest  thing  I  can  kiss,  except 
one  other  thing.    Shall  I  tell  you " 

"My  face"?  And  why  do  you  not  kiss 
that?" 

"Oh,  may  I?"  said  I,  and  drawing  her  to 
me  I  kissed  her  soft  cheek.  "May  I  kiss  the 
other  cheek  now?"  I  asked.  She  turned  it  to 
me,  and  when  I  had  kissed  it  rapturously, 
I   gazed   into   her   eyes,    which    looked   back, 


A  CRYSTAL  AGE  155 

bright  and  unabashed,  into  mine.  "I  think 
— I  think  I  made  a  slight  mistake,  Yoletta," 
I  said.  "What  I  meant  to  ask  was,  will  you 
let  me  kiss  you  where  I  like — on  your  chin, 
for  instance,  or  just  where  I  like*?" 

"Yes;  but  you  are  keeping  me  too  long. 
Kiss  me  as  many  times  as  you  like,  and  then 
let  us  admire  the  prospect." 

I  drew  her  closer  and  kissed  her  mouth,  not 
once  nor  twice,  but  clinging  to  it  with  all  the 
ardor  of  passion,  as  if  my  lips  had  become  glued 
to  hers. 

Suddenly  she  disengaged  herself  from  me. 
"Why  do  you  kiss  my  mouth  in  that  violent 
way*?"  she  exclaimed,  her  eyes  sparkling,  her 
cheeks  flushed.  "You  seem  like  some  hungry 
animal  that  wanted  to  devour  me." 

That  was,  oddly  enough,  just  how  I  felt. 
"Do  you  not  know,  sweetest,  why  I  kiss  you 
in  that  way*?    Because  I  love  you." 

"I  know  you  do,  Smith.  I  can  understand 
and  appreciate  your  love  without  having  my 
lips  bruised." 

"And  do  you  love  me,  Yoletta*?" 

"Yes,  certainly — did  you  not  know  that?" 


156  A  CRYSTAL  AGE 

"And  is  it  not  sweet  to  kiss  when  you  love1? 
Do  you  know  what  love  is,  darling?  Do  you 
love  me  a  thousand  times  more  than  any  one 
else  in  the  world'?" 

"How  extravagantly  you  talk!"  she  replied. 
"What  strange  things  you  say!" 

"Yes,  dear,  because  love  is  strange — the 
strangest,  sweetest  thing  in  life.  It  comes 
once  only  to  the  heart,  and  the  one  person  loved 
is  infinitely  more  than  all  others.  Do  you  not 
understand  that?" 

"Oh  no;  what  do  you  mean,  Smith?" 

"Is  there  any  other  person  dearer  to  your 
heart  than  I  am?" 

"I  love  every  one  in  the  house,  some  more 
than  others.  Those  that  are  closely  related  to 
me  I  love  most." 

"Oh,  please  say  no  more!  You  love  your 
people  with  one  kind  of  love,  but  me  with  a 
different  love — is  it  not  so?" 

"There  is  only  one  kind  of  love,"  said  she. 

"Ah,  you  say  that  because  you  are  a  child 
yet,  and  do  not  know.  You  are  even  younger 
than  I  thought,  perhaps.  How  old  are  you, 
dear?" 


A  CRYSTAL  AGE  157 

'Thirty-one  years  old,"  she  replied,  with  the 
utmost  gravity. 

"Oh,  Yoletta,  what  an  awful  cram!  I  mean 
— oh,  I  beg  your  pardon  for  being  so  rude! 
But — but  don't  you  think  you  can  draw  it 
mild4?  Thirty-one — what  a  joke!  Why,  I'm 
an  old  fellow  compared  with  you,  and  I'm  not 
twenty- two  yet.  Do  tell  me  what  you  mean, 
Yoletta?" 

She  was  not  listening  to  me,  I  saw :  she  had 
risen  from  the  grass  and  seated  herself  again 
on  the  stone.  For  only  answer  to  my  question 
she  pointed  to  the  west  with  her  hand,  saying: 
"Look  there,  Smith." 

I  stood  up  and  looked.  The  sun  was  near 
the  horizon  now,  and  partially  concealed  by 
low  clouds,  which  were  beginning  to  form — 
gray,  and  tinged  with  purple  and  red;  but 
their  misty  edges  bumed  with  an  intense 
yellow  flame.  Above,  the  sky  was  clear  as 
blue  glass,  barred  with  pale-yellow  rays,  shot 
forth  by  the  sinking  sun,  and  resembling  the 
spokes  of  an  immense  celestial  wheel  reaching: 
to  the  zenith.  The  billowy  earth,  with  its 
forests    in    deep    green    and    many-colored, 


158  A  CRYSTAL  AGE 

autumnal  foliage,  stretched  far  before  us,  here 
in  shadow,  and  there  flushed  with  rich  light; 
while  the  mountain  range,  looming  near  and 
stupendous  on  our  right,  had  changed  its 
color  from  dark  blue  to  violet. 

The  doubts  and  fears  agitating  my  heart 
made  me  indifferent  to  the  surpassing  beauty 
of  the  scene:  I  turned  impatiently  from  it  to 
gaze  again  on  her  graceful  figure,  girlish  still 
in  its  slim  proportions;  but  her  face,  flushed 
with  sunlight,  and  crowned  with  its  dark, 
shining  hair,  seemed  to  me  like  the  face  of 
one  of  the  immortals.  The  expression  of 
rapt  devotion  on  it  made  me  silent,  for  it 
seemed  as  if  she  too  had  been  touched  by 
nature's  magic,  like  earth  and  sky,  and  been 
transfigured;  and  waiting  for  the  mood  to 
pass,  I  stood  by  her  side,  resting  my  hand 
on  her  knee.  By-and-by  she  looked  down 
and  smiled,  and  then  I  returned  to  the  subject 
of  her  age. 

"Surely,  Yoletta,"  said  I,  "you  were  only 
poking  fun  at  me — I  mean,  amusing  yourself  at 
my  expense.  You  can't  possibly  be  more  than 
about  fifteen,  or  sixteen  at  the  very  outside." 


A  CRYSTAL  AGE  159 

She  smiled  again  and  shook  her  head. 

"Oh,  I  know,  I  can  solve  the  riddle  now. 
Your  years  are  different,  of  course,  like  every- 
thing else  in  this  latitude.  A  month  is  called 
a  year  with  you,  and  that  would  make  you, 
let  me  see — how  much  is  twelve  times  thirty- 
one*?  Oh,  hang  it,  nearly  five  hundred,  I 
should  think.  Why  am  I  such  a  duffer  at 
mental  arithmetic!  It  is  just  the  contrary — 
how  many  twelves  in  thirty-one?  About  two 
and  a  half  in  round  numbers,  and  that's  absurd, 
as  you  are  not  a  baby.  Oh,  I  have  it:  your 
seasons  are  called  years,  of  course — why  didn't 
I  see  it  before!  No,  that  would  make  you 
only  seven  and  a  half.  Ah,  yes,  I  see  it  now : 
a  year  means  two  years,  or  two  of  your  years 
— summer  and  winter — mean  a  year;  and  that 
just  makes  you  sixteen,  exactly  what  I  had 
imagined.    Is  it  not  so,  Yoletta'?" 

"I  do  not  know  what  you  are  talking  about, 
Smith ;  and  I  am  not  listening." 

"Well,  listen  for  one  moment,  and  tell  me 
how  long  does  a  year  last*?" 

"It  lasts  from  the  time  the  leaves  fall  in  the 
autumn  until  they  fall  again;  and  it  lasts  from 


160  A  CRYSTAL  AGE 

the  time  the  swallows  come  in  spring  until  they 
come  again." 

"And  seriously,  honestly,  you  are  thirty-one 
years  old1?" 

"Did  I  not  tell  you  so?  Yes,  I  am  thirty- 
one  years  old." 

"Well,  I  never  heard  anything  to  equal 
this!  Good  heavens,  what  does  it  mean?  I 
know  it  is  awfully  rude  to  inquire  a  lady's  age, 
but  what  am  I  to  do?  Will  you  kindly  tell 
me  Edra's  age?" 

"Edra?  I  forget.  Oh  yes;  she  is  sixty- 
three." 

"Sixty-three!  I'll  be  shot  if  she's  a  day 
more  than  twenty-eight!  Idiot  that  I  am, 
why  can't  I  keep  calm!  But,  Yoletta,  how 
you  distress  me!  It  almost  frightens  me  to 
ask  another  question,  but  do  tell  me  how  old 
your  father  is?" 

"He  is  nearly  two  hundred  years  old — a 
hundred  and  ninety-eight,  I  think,"  she  replied. 

"Heavens  on  earth — I  shall  go  stark, 
staring  mad!"  But  I  could  say  no  more; 
leaving  her  side  I  sat  down  on  a  low  stone 
at  some  distance,   with  a  stunned  feeling  in 


A  CRYSTAL  AGE  l6l 

my  brain,  and  something  like  despair  in  my 
heart.      That  she   had   told   me   the   truth   I 
could  no  longer   doubt   for  one  moment-   it 
was  impossible   for  her  crystal  nature  to  be 
anything  but  truthful.     The  number  of  her 
years    mattered    nothing    to   me;    the    virgin 
sweetness  of  girlhood  was  on  her    lips    the 
freshness   and   glory   of   early  youth   on'  her 
forehead;  the  misery  was  that  she  had  lived 
thirty-one  years  in  the  world  and  did  not  under- 
stand the  words  I  had  spoken  to  her-^lid  not 
know  what  love,  or  passion,  was!     Would  it 
always  be  st^would  my  heart  consume  itself 
to  ashes,  and  kindle  no  fire  in  hers? 

Then,  as  I  m  theT^  fflM  ^  ^ 
despa,ring  thoughts,  she  came  down  from 
her  perch,  and,  dropping  on  her  knees  before 
me,  put  her  aims  about  my  neck  and  gazed 
steadily  into  my  face.  "Why  are  you 
troubled,  Smith-have  I  said  anything  to 
hurt  you?"  said  she.  "And  do  you  not 
know  that  you  have  offended  me?" 

''Have  I  ?    Tell  me  how,  dearest  Yoletta." 
"By    asking    questions,    and    saying    wild 
meaningless  things  while  I  sat   there  watch- 


162  A  CRYSTAL  AGE 

ing  the  setting  sun.  It  troubled  me  and 
spoiled  my  pleasure;  but  I  will  forgive  you, 
Smith,  because  I  love  you.  Do  you  not 
think  I  love  you  enough1?  You  are  very 
dear  to  me — dearer  every  day."  And  draw- 
ing down  my  face  she  kissed  my  lips. 

"Darling,  you  make  me  happy  again,"  I 
returned,  "for  if  your  love  increases  every 
day,  the  time  will  perhaps  come  when  you  will 
understand  me,  and  be  all  I  wish  to  me." 

"What  is  it  that  you  wish?"  she 
questioned. 

"That  you  should  be  mine — mine  alone, 
wholly  mine — and  give  yourself  to  me,  body 
and  soul." 

She  continued  gazing  up  into  my  eyes. 
"In  a  sense  we  do,  I  suppose,  give  our- 
selves, body  and  soul,  to  those  we  love," 
she  said.  "And  if  you  are  not  yet  satisfied 
that  I  have  given  myself  to  you  in  that  way, 
you  must  wait  patiently,  saying  and  doing 
nothing  willfully  to  alienate  my  heart,  until 
the  time  arrives  when  my  love  will  be  equal 
to  your  desire.  Come,"  she  added,  and,  rising, 
pulled  me  up  by  the  hand. 


A  CRYSTAL  AGE  163 

Silently,  and  somewhat  pensively,  we  started 
hand  in  hand  on  our  walk  down  the  hill. 
Presently  she  dropped  on  her  knees,  and 
opening  the  grass  with  her  hands,  displayed 
a  small,  slender  bud,  on  a  round,  smooth 
stem,  springing  without  leaves  from  the  soil. 
"Do  you  see!"  she  said,  looking  up  at  me  with 
a  bright  smile. 

"Yes,  dear,  I  see  a  bud;  but  I  do  not  know 
anything  more  about  it." 

"Oh,  Smith,  do  you  not  know  that  it  is  a 
rainbow  lily !"  And  rising,  she  took  my  hand 
and  walked  on  again. 

"What  is  the  rainbow  lily?" 

"By-and-by,  in  a  few  days,  it  will  be  in 
fullest  bloom,  and  the  earth  will  be  covered 
with  its  glory." 

"It  is  so  late  in  the  season,  Yoletta! 
Spring  is  the  time  to  see  the  earth  covered  with 
the  glory  of  flowers." 

"There  is  nothing  to  equal  the  rainbow  lily, 
which  comes  when  most  flowers  are  dead,  or 
have  their  bright  colors  tarnished.  Have 
you  lived  in  the  moon,  Smith,  that  I  have  to 
tell  you  these  things?" 


164  A  CRYSTAL  AGE 

"No,  dear,  but  in  that  island  where  all 
things,  including  flowers,  were  different." 

"Ah,  yes;  tell  me  about  the  island." 

Now  "that  island"  was  an  unfortunate 
subject,  and  I  was  not  prepared  to  break 
the  resolution  I  had  made  of  prudently  hold- 
ing my  tongue  about  its  peculiar  institutions. 
"How  can  I  tell  you? — how  could  you 
imagine  it  if  I  were  to  tell  you?"  I  said, 
evading  the  question.  "You  have  seen  the 
heavens  black  with  tempests,  and  have  felt 
the  lightnings  blinding  your  eyes,  and  have 
heard  the  crash  of  the  thunder:  could  you 
imagine  all  that  if  you  had  never  witnessed 
it,  and  I  described  it  to  you?" 

"No." 

"Then  it  would  be  useless  to  tell  you.  And 
now  tell  me  about  the  rainbow  lilies,  for  I  am 
a  great  lover  of  flowers." 

"Are  you?  Is  it  strange  you  should  have 
a  taste  common  to  all  human  beings?"  she 
returned  with  a  pretty  smile.  "But  it  is 
easier  to  ask  questions  than  to  answer  them. 
If  you  had  never  seen  the  sun  setting  in 
glory,    or    the    midnight    sky    shining    with 


A  CRYSTAL  AGE  165 

myriads  of  stars,  could  you  imagine  these  things 
if  I  described  them  to  you4?" 

"No." 

"That  word  is  an  echo,  Smith.  You  must 
wait  for  the  earth  to  bring  forth  her  rainbow 
lilies,  and  the  heart  its  love." 

"With  or  without  flowers,  the  world  is  a 
paradise  to  me,  with  you  at  my  side,  Yoletta. 
Ah,  if  you  will  be  my  Eve !  How  sweet  it  is 
to  walk  hand  in  hand  with  you  in  the  twilight; 
but  it  was  not  so  nice  when  you  were  scuttling 
from  me  like  a  wild  rabbit.  I'm  glad  to  find 
that  you  do  walk  sometimes." 

"Yes,  sometimes — on  solemn  occasions." 

"Yes*?  Tell  me  about  these  solemn 
occasions." 

"This  is  not  one  of  them,"  she  replied,  sud- 
denly withdrawing  her  hand  from  mine;  then 
with  a  ringing  laugh,  she  sped  from  me,  bound- 
ing down  the  hill-side  with  the  speed  and  grace 
of  a  gazelle. 

I  instantly  gave  chase;  but  it  was  a  very 
vain  chase,  although  I  put  forth  all  my 
powers.  Occasionally  she  would  drop  on 
her   knees   to    admire   some   wild   flower,    or 


166  A  CRYSTAL  AGE 

search  for  a  lily  bud;  and  whenever  she  came 
to  a  large  stone,  she  would  spring  on  to  it,  and 
stand  for  some  time  motionless,  gazing  at  the 
rich  hues  of  the  afterglow;  but  always  at  my 
approach  she  would  spring  lightly  away,  escap- 
ing from  me  as  easily  as  a  wild  bird.  Tired 
with  running,  I  at  last  gave  up  the  hunt,  and 
walked  soberly  home  by  myself,  wondering 
whether  that  conversation  on  the  summit  of  the 
hill,  and  all  the  curious  information  I  had 
gathered  from  it,  should  make  me  the  most 
miserable  or  the  most  happy  being  upon  earth. 


XII 

The  question  whether  I  had  reason  to  feel 
happy  or  the  reverse  still  occupied  me  after 
going  to  bed,  and  kept  me  awake  far  into 
the  night.  I  put  it  to  myself  in  a  variety  of 
ways,  concentrating  my  faculties  on  it;  but 
the  result  still  remained  doubtful.  Mine  was 
a  curious  position  for  a  man  to  be  in;  for 
here  was  I,  very  much  in  love  with  Yoletta, 
who  said  that  her  age  was  thirty-one,  and 
yet  who  knew  of  only  one  kind  of  love — 
that  sisterly  affection  which  she  gave  me  so 
unstintingly.  Of  course  I  was  surrounded 
with  mysteries,  being  in  the  house  but  not 
of  it,  to  the  manner  born;  and  I  had  already 
arrived  at  the  conclusion  that  these  mysteries 
could  only  be  known  to  me  through  reading, 
once  that  accomplishment  was  mine.  For 
it  seemed  rather  a  dangerous  thing  to  ask 
questions,  since  the  most  innocent  inter- 
rogatory might  be  taken  as  an  offense,  only 

167 


168  A  CRYSTAL  AGE 

to  be  expiated  by  solitary  confinement  and 
a  bread-and-water  diet;  or,  if  not  punishable 
in  that  way,  it  would  probably  be  regarded 
as  a  result  of  the  supposed  collision  of  my 
head  with  a  stone.  To  be  reticent,  observant, 
and  studious  was  a  safe  plan;  this  had  served 
to  make  me  diligent  and  attentive  with  my 
lessons,  and  my  gentle  teacher  had  been 
much  pleased  with  the  progress  I  had  made, 
even  in  a  few  days.  Her  words  on  the  hill 
had  now,  however,  filled  me  with  anxiety, 
and  I  wanted  to  go  a  little  below  the  surface 
of  this  strange  system  of  life.  Why  was  this 
large  family — twenty^two  members  present, 
besides  some  absent  pilgrims,  as  they  are 
called — composed  only  of  adults'?  Again, 
more  curious  still,  why  was  the  father  of  the 
house  adorned  with  a  majestic  beard,  while 
the  other  men,  of  various  ages,  had  smooth 
faces,  or,  at  any  rate,  nothing  more  than  a 
slight  down  on  the  upper  lip  and  cheeks'? 
It  was  plain  that  they  never  shaved.  And 
were  these  people  all  really  brothers  and 
sisters'?  So  far,  I  had  been  unable,  even  with 
the  most  jealous  watching,  to  detect  anything 
like  love-making  or  flirting;  they  all  treated 


A  CRYSTAL  AGE  169 

each  other,  as  Yoletta  treated  me,  with  kind- 
ness and  affection,  and  nothing  more.  And 
if  the  head  of  the  house  was  in  fact  the  father 
of  them  all — since  in  two  centuries  a  man 
might  have  an  indefinite  number  of  children 
— who  was  the  mother  or  mothers'?  I  was 
never  good  at  guessing,  but  the  result  of 
my  cogitations  was  one  happy  idea — to  ask 
Yoletta  whether  she  had  a  living  mother  or 
not?  She  was  my  teacher,  my  friend  and 
guardian  in  the  house,  and  if  it  should  turn 
out  that  the  question  was  an  unfortunate  one, 
an  offense,  she  would  be  readier  to  forgive 
than  another. 

Accordingly,  next  day,  as  soon  as  we  were 
alone  together  I  put  the  question  to  her, 
although  not  without  a  nervous  qualm. 

She  looked  at  me  with  the  greatest  surprise. 
"Do  you  mean  to  say,"  she  answered,  "that 
you  do  not  know  I  have  a  mother — that  there 
is  a  mother  of  the  house*?" 

"How  should  I  know,  Yoletta?"  I  returned. 
"I  have  not  heard  you  address  any  one  as 
mother;  besides,  how  is  one  to  know  anything 
in  a  strange  place  unless  he  is  told*?" 

"How  strange,  then,  that  you  never  asked 


170  A  CRYSTAL  AGE 

till  now!  There  is  a  mother  of  the  house — 
the  mother  of  us  all,  of  you  since  you  were 
made  one  of  us;  and  it  happens,  too,  that 
I  am  her  daughter — her  only  child.  You 
have  not  seen  her  because  you  have  never 
asked  to  be  taken  to  her;  and  she  is  not 
among  us  because  of  her  illness.  For  very 
long  she  has  been  afflicted  with  a  malady 
from  which  she  cannot  recover,  and  for  a 
whole  year  she  has  not  left  the  Mother's 
Room." 

She  spoke  with  eyes  cast  down,  in  a  low 
and  very  sad  voice.  It  was  only  too  plain 
now  that  in  my  ignorance  I  had  been  guilty 
of  a  grave  breach  of  the  etiquette  or  laws  of 
the  house;  and  anxious  to  repair  my  fault, 
also  to  know  more  of  the  one  female  in  this 
mysterious  community  who  had  loved,  or  at 
all  events  had  known  marriage,  I  asked  if  I 
might  see  her. 

"Yes,"  she  answered,  after  some  hesitation, 
still  standing  with  eyes  cast  down.  Then 
suddenly,  bursting  into  tears,  she  exclaimed: 
"Oh,  Smith,  how  could  you  be  in  the  world 
and  not  know  that  there  is  a  mother  in  every 
house!     How  could  you  travel  and  not  know 


A  CRYSTAL  AGE  171 

that  when  you  enter  a  house,  after  greeting 
the  father,  you  first  of  all  ask  to  be  taken  to 
the  mother  to  worship  her  and  feel  her  hand 
on  your  head4?  Did  you  not  see  that  we  were 
astonished  and  grieved  at  your  silence  when 
you  came,  and  we  waited  in  vain  for  you  to 
speak?" 

I  was  dumb  with  shame  at  her  words.  How 
well  I  remembered  that  first  evening  in  the 
house,  when  I  could  not  but  see  that  something 
was  expected  of  me,  yet  never  ventured  to  ask 
for  enlightenment! 

Presently,  recovering  from  her  tears,  she 
went  from  the  room,  and,  left  alone,  I  was 
more  than  ever  filled  with  wonder  at  what 
she  had  told  me.  I  had  not  imagined  that 
she  had  come  into  the  world  without  a 
mother;  nevertheless,  the  fact  that  this 
passionless  girl,  who  had  told  me  that  there 
was  only  one  kind  of  love,  was  the  daughter 
of  a  woman  actually  living  in  the  house,  of 
whose  existence  I  had  never  before  heard, 
except  in  an  indirect  way  which  I  failed  to 
understand,  seemed  like  a  dream  to  me.  Now 
I  was  about  to  see  this  hidden  woman,  and 
the  interview  would  reveal  something  to  me, 


172  A  CRYSTAL  AGE 

for  I  would  discover  in  her  face  and  con- 
versation whether  she  was  in  the  same  mystic 
state  of  mind  as  the  others,  which  made  them 
seem  like  the  dwellers  in  some  better  place 
than  this  poor  old  sinful,  sorrowful  world. 
My  wishes,  however,  were  not  to  be  gratified, 
for  presently  Yoletta  returned  and  said  that 
her  mother  did  not  desire  to  see  me  then.  She 
looked  so  distressed  when  she  told  me  this, 
putting  her  white  arms  about  my  neck  as  if  to 
console  me  for  my  disappointment,  that  I  re- 
frained from  pressing  her  with  questions,  and 
for  several  days  nothing  more  was  spoken  be- 
tween us  on  the  subject. 

At  length,  one  day  when  our  lesson  was 
over,  with  an  expression  of  mingled  pleasure 
and  anxiety  on  her  face,  she  rose  and  took  my 
hand,  saying,  "Come." 

I  knew  she  was  going  to  take  me  to  her 
mother,  and  rose  to  obey  her  gladly,  for  since 
the  conversation  I  had  had  with  her  the  desire 
to  know  the  lady  of  the  house  had  given  me 
no  peace. 

Leaving  the  music  room,  we  entered  another 
apartment,  of  the  same  nave-like  form,  but 
vaster,  or,  at  all  events,  considerably  longer. 


A  CRYSTAL  AGE  173 

There  I  started  and  stood  still,  amazed  at  the 
scene  before  me.  The  light,  which  found 
entrance  through  tall,  narrow  windows,  was 
dim,  but  sufficient  to  show  the  whole  room 
with  everything  in  it,  ending  at  the  further 
extremity  at  a  flight  of  broad  stone  steps. 
The  middle  part  of  the  floor,  running  the 
entire  length  of  the  apartment,  was  about 
twenty  feet  wide,  but  on  either  side  of  this 
passage,  which  was  covered  with  mosaic,  the 
floor  was  raised;  and  on  this  higher  level 
I  saw,  as  I  imagined,  a  great  company  of 
men  and  women,  singly  and  in  groups,  stand- 
ing or  seated  on  great  stone  chairs  in  various 
positions  and  attitudes.  Presently  I  perceived 
that  these  were  not  living  beings,  but  life-like 
effigies  of  stone,  the  drapery  they  were  repre- 
sented as  wearing  being  of  many  different 
richly-colored  stones,  having  the  appearance 
of  real  garments.  So  natural  did  the  hair 
look,  that  only  when  I  ascended  the  steps 
and  touched  the  head  of  one  of  the  statues 
was  I  convinced  that  it  was  also  of  stone. 
Even  more  wonderful  in  their  resemblance  to 
life  were  the  eyes,  which  seemed  to  return 
my  half-fearful  glances  with  a  calm,  question- 


174  A  CRYSTAL  AGE 

ing  scrutiny  I  found  it  hard  to  endure.  I 
hurried  on  after  my  guide  without  speaking, 
but  when  I  got  to  the  middle  of  the  room 
I  paused  involuntarily  once  more,  so  pro- 
foundly did  one  of  the  statues  impress  me. 
It  was  of  a  woman  of  a  majestic  figure  and 
proud,  beautiful  face,  with  an  abundance  of 
silvery-white  hair.  She  sat  bending  forward 
with  her  eyes  fixed  on  mine  as  I  advanced, 
one  hand  pressed  to  her  bosom,  while  with 
the  other  she  seemed  in  the  act  of  throwing 
back  her  white  unbound  tresses  from  her 
forehead.  There  was,  I  thought,  a  look  of 
calm,  unbending  pride  on  the  face,  but  on 
coming  closer  this  expression  disappeared, 
giving  place  to  one  so  wistful  and  pleading, 
so  charged  with  subtle  pain,  that  I  stood 
gazing  like  one  fascinated,  until  Yoletta 
took  my  hand  and  gently  drew  me  away. 
Still,  in  spite  of  the  absorbing  nature  of  the 
matter  on  which  I  was  bound,  that  strange 
face  continued  to  haunt  me,  and  glancing  up 
and  down  through  that  long  array  of  calm- 
browed,  beautiful  women,  I  could  see  no  one 
that  was  like  it. 

Arrived    at    the    end    of    the   gallery,    we 


A  CRYSTAL  AGE  175 

ascended  the  broad  stone  steps,  and  came  to 
a  landing  twenty  or  thirty  feet  above  the 
level  of  the  floor  we  had  traversed.  Here 
Yoletta  pushed  a  glass  door  aside  and  ushered 
me  into  another  apartment — the  Mother's 
Room.  It  was  spacious,  and,  unlike  the 
gallery,  well-lighted;  the  air  in  it  was  also 
warm  and  balmy,  and  seemed  charged  with 
a  subtle  aroma.  But  now  my  whole  attention 
was  concentrated  on  a  group  of  persons  before 
me,  and  chiefly  on  its  central  figure — the 
woman  I  had  so  much  desired  to  see.  She 
was  seated,  leaning  back  in  a  somewhat 
listless  attitude,  on  a  very  large,  low,  couch- 
like seat,  covered  with  a  soft,  violet-colored 
material.  My  very  first  glance  at  her  face 
revealed  to  me  that  she  differed  in  appear- 
ance and  expression  from  the  other  inmates 
of  the  house:  one  reason  was  that  she  was 
extremely  pale,  and  bore  on  her  worn  counte- 
nance the  impress  of  long-continued  suffering; 
but  that  was  not  all.  She  wore  her  hair, 
which  fell  unbound  on  her  shoulders,  longer 
than  the  others,  and  her  eyes  looked  larger, 
and  of  a  deeper  green.  There  was  something 
wonderfully   fascinating  to  me  in  that  pale, 


176  A  CRYSTAL  AGE 

suffering  face,  for,  in  spite  of  suffering,  it  was 
beautiful  and  loving;  but  dearer  than  all  these 
things  to  my  mind  were  the  marks  of  passion 
it    exhibited,    the    petulant,    almost    scornful 
mouth,    and    the    half-eager,    half-weary    ex- 
pression of  the  eyes,  for  these  seemed  rather 
to  belong  to  that  imperfect  world  from  which 
I  had  been  severed,  and  which  was  still  dear 
to  my  unregenerate  heart.     In  other  respects 
also  she  differed  from  the  rest  of  the  women, 
her    dress    being    a    long,     pale-blue     robe, 
embroidered  with  saffron-colored  flowers  and 
foliage   down   the   middle,    and   also   on    the 
neck   and   the   wide   sleeves.      On   the   couch 
at  her  side  sat  the  father  of  the  house,  hold- 
ing  her   hand   and   talking    in   low   tones   to 
her;    two   of   the   young   women   sat   at   her 
feet  on  cushions,  engaged  on  embroidery  work, 
while  another  stood  behind  her;  one  of  the 
young  men  was  also  there,  and  was  just  now 
showing  her  a  sketch,  and  apparently  explain- 
ing something  in  it. 

I  had  expected  to  find  a  sick,  feeble  lady, 
in  a  dimly-lighted  chamber,  with  perhaps  one 
attendant  at  her  side;  now,  coming  so  unex- 
pectedly before  this  proud-looking,   beautiful 


A  CRYSTAL  AGE  177 

woman,  with  so  many  about  her,  I  was  com- 
pletely abashed,  and,  feeling  too  confused  to 
say  anything,  stood  silent  and  awkward  in  her 
presence. 

"This  is  our  stranger,  Chastel,"  said  the  old 
man  to  her,  at  the  same  time  bestowing  an 
encouraging  look  on  me. 

She  turned  from  the  sketch  she  had  been 
studying,  and  raising  herself  slightly  from  her 
half-recumbent  attitude,  fixed  her  dark  eyes  on 
me  with  some  interest. 

"I  do  not  see  why  you  were  so  much  im- 
pressed," she  remarked  after  a  while.  "There 
is  nothing  very  strange  in  him  after  all." 

I  felt  my  face  grow  hot  with  shame  and 
anger,  for  she  seemed  to  look  on  me  and  speak 
of  me — not  to  me — as  if  I  had  been  some 
strange,  semi-human  creature,  discovered  in  the 
woods,  and  brought  in  as  a  great  curiosity. 

"No;  it  was  not  his  countenance,  only  his 
curious  garments  and  his  words  that  astonished 
us,"  said  the  father  in  reply. 

She  made  no  answer  to  this,  but  presently, 
addressing  me  directly,  said:  "You  were  a 
long  time  in  the  house  before  you  expressed 
a  wish  to  see  me." 


178  A  CRYSTAL  AGE 

I  found  my  speech  then — a  wretched, 
hesitating  speech,  for  which  I  hated  myself — 
and  replied,  that  I  had  asked  to  be  allowed 
to  see  her  as  soon  as  I  had  been  informed  of 
her  existence. 

She  turned  on  the  father  a  look  of  surprise 
and  'inquiry. 

"You  must  remember,  Chastel,"  said  he, 
"that  he  comes  to  us  from  some  strange, 
distant  island,  having  customs  different  from 
ours — a  thing  I  had  never  heard  of  before.  I 
can  give  you  no  other  explanation." 

Her  lip  curled,  and  then,  turning  to  me,  she 
continued :  "If  there  are  houses  in  your  island 
without  mothers  in  them,  it  is  not  so  elsewhere 
in  the  world.  That  you  went  out  to  travel 
so  poorly  provided  with  knowledge  is  a  marvel 
to  us;  and  as  I  have  had  the  pain  of  telling 
you  this,  I  must  regret  that  you  ever  left  your 
own  home." 

I  could  make  no  reply  to  these  words,  which 
fell  on  me  like  whip-strokes;  and  looking  at 
the  other  faces,  I  could  see  no  sympathy  in 
them  for  me;  as  they  looked  at  her — their 
mother — and  listened  to  her  words,  the  expres- 
sion they  wore   was  love  and  devotion  to  her 


A  CRYSTAL  AGE  179 

only,  reminding  me  a  little  of  the  angel  faces 
on  Guido's  canvas  of  the  "Coronation  of  the 
Virgin." 

"Go  now,"  she  presently  added  in  a  petulant 
tone;  "I  am  tired,  and  wish  to  rest";  and 
Yoletta,  who  had  been  standing  silently  by 
me  all  the  time,  took  my  hand  and  led  me  from 
the  room. 

With  eyes  cast  down  I  passed  through  the 
gallery,  paying  no  attention  to  its  strange, 
stony  occupants;  and  leaving  my  gentle  con- 
ductress without  a  word  at  the  door  of  the 
music-room,  I  hurried  away  from  the  house. 
For  I  could  feel  love  and  compassion  in  the 
touch  of  the  dear  girl's  hand,  and  it  seemed 
to  me  that  if  she  had  spoken  one  word,  my 
overcharged  heart  would  have  found  vent  in 
tears.  I  only  wished  to  be  alone,  to  brood 
in  secret  on  my  pain  and  the  bitterness  of 
defeat ;  for  it  was  plain  that  the  woman  I  had 
so  wished  to  see,  and,  since  seeing  her,  so 
wished  to  be  allowed  to  love,  felt  towards 
me  nothing  but  contempt  and  aversion,  and 
that  from  no  fault  of  my  own,  she,  whose 
friendship  I  most  needed,  was  become  my 
enemy  in  the  house. 


180  A  CRYSTAL  AGE 

My  steps  took  me  to  the  river.  Following 
its  banks  for  about  a  mile,  I  came  at  last  to 
a  grove  of  stately  old  trees,  and  there  I  seated 
myself  on  a  large  twisted  root  projecting  over 
the  water.  To  this  sequestered  spot  I  had 
come  to  indulge  my  resentful  feelings;  for 
here  I  could  speak  out  my  bitterness  aloud, 
if  I  felt  so  minded,  where  there  were  no 
witnesses  to  hear  me.  I  had  restrained  those 
unmanly  tears,  so  nearly  shed  in  Yoletta's 
presence,  and  kept  back  by  dark  thoughts 
on  the  way;  now  I  was  sitting  quietly  by 
myself,  safe  from  observation,  safe  even  from 
that  sympathy  my  bruised  spirit  could  not 
suffer. 

Scarcely  had  I  seated  myself  before  a  great 
brown  animal,  with  black  eyes,  round  and 
fierce,  rose  to  the  surface  of  the  stream  half 
a  dozen  yards  from  my  feet;  then  quickly 
catching  sight  of  me,  it  plunged  noisily  again 
under  water,  breaking  the  clear  image  reflected 
there  with  a  hundred  ripples.  I  waited  for 
the  last  wavelet  to  fade  away,  but  when  the 
surface  was  once  more  still  and  smooth  as 
dark  glass,  I  began  to  be  affected  by  the 
profound   silence   and  melancholy   of   nature, 


A  CRYSTAL  AGE  181 

and  by  a  something  proceeding  from  nature 
— phantom,  emanation,  essence,  I  know  not 
what.  My  soul,  not  my  sense,  perceived  it, 
standing  with  finger  on  lips,  there,  close  to 
me;  its  feet  resting  on  the  motionless  water, 
which  gave  no  reflection  of  its  image,  the  clear 
amber  sunlight  passing  undimmed  through  its 
substance.  To  my  soul  its  spoken  "Hush!" 
was  audible,  and  again,  and  yet  again,  it  said 
"Hush!"  until  the  tumult  in  me  was  still,  and 
I  could  not  think  my  own  thoughts.  I  could 
thereafter  only  listen,  breathless,  straining  my 
senses  to  catch  some  natural  sound,  however 
faint.  Far  away  in  the  dim  distance,  in  some 
blue  pasture,  a  cow  was  lowing,  and  the 
recurring  sound  passed  me  like  the  humming 
flight  of  an  insect,  then  fainter  still,  like  an 
imagined  sound,  until  it  ceased.  A  withered 
leaf  fell  from  the  tree-top ;  I  heard  it  fluttering 
downwards,  touching  other  leaves  in  its  fall 
until  the  silent  grass  received  it.  Then,  as 
I  listened  for  another  leaf,  suddenly  from  over- 
head came  the  brief  gushing  melody  of  some 
late  singer,  a  robin-like  sound,  ringing  out 
clear  and  distinct  as  a  flourish  on  a  clarionet: 
brilliant,     joyous,     and    unexpected,     yet    in 


182  A  CRYSTAL  AGE 

keeping  with  that  melancholy  quiet,  affecting 
the  mind  like  a  spray  of  gold  and  scarlet 
embroidery  on  a  pale,  neutral  ground.  The 
sun  went  down,  and  in  setting,  kindled  the 
boles  of  the  old  trees  here  and  there  into 
pillars  of  red  fire,  while  others  in  deeper  shade 
looked  by  contrast  like  pillars  of  ebony;  and 
wherever  the  foliage  was  thinnest,  the  level 
rays  shining  through  imparted  to  the  sere 
leaves  a  translucence  and  splendor  that  was 
like  the  stained  glass  in  the  windows  of  some 
darkening  cathedral.  All  along  the  river  a 
white  mist  began  to  rise,  a  slight  wind  sprang 
up  and  the  vapor  drifted,  drowning  the  reeds 
and  bushes,  and  wreathing  its  ghostly  arms 
about  the  old  trees:  and  watching  the  mist, 
and  listening  to  the  "hallowed  airs  and 
symphonies"  whispered  by  the  low  wind,  I 
felt  that  there  was  no  longer  any  anger  in  my 
heart.  Nature,  and  something  in  and  yet 
more  than  nature,  had  imparted  her  "soft 
influences"  and  healed  her  "wandering  and 
distempered  child"  until  he  could  no  more 
be  a  "jarring  and  discordant  thing"  in  her  sweet 
and  sacred  presence. 

When  I  looked  up  a  change  had  come  over 


A  CRYSTAL  AGE  183 

the  scene:  the  round,  full  moon  had  risen, 
silvering  the  mist,  and  filling  the  wide,  dim 
earth  with  a  new  mysterious  glory.  I  rose 
from  my  seat  and  returned  to  the  house,  and 
with  that  new  insight  and  comprehension 
which  had  come  to  me — that  message,  as  I 
could  not  but  regard  it — I  now  felt  nothing 
but  love  and  sympathy  for  the  suffering 
woman  who  had  wounded  me  with  her  un- 
merited displeasure,  and  my  only  desire  was  to 
show  my  devotion  to  her. 


XIII 

As  I  approached  the  building,  soft  strains 
floating  far  out  into  the  night-air  became  au- 
dible, and  I  knew  that  the  sweet  spirit  of  mu- 
sic, to  which  they  were  all  so  devoted,  was 
present  with  them.  After  listening  for  awhile 
in  the  shadow  of  the  portico  I  went  in,  and, 
anxious  to  avoid  disturbing  the  singers,  stole 
away  into  a  dusky  corner,  where  I  sat  down 
by  myself.  Yoletta  had,  however,  seen  me 
enter,  for  presently  she  came  to  me. 

"Why  did  you  not  come  in  to  supper, 
Smith  ?"  she  said.  "And  why  do  you  look 
so  sad?" 

"Do  you  need  to  ask,  Yoletta?  Ah,  it 
would  have  made  me  so  happy  if  I  could 
have  won  your  mother's  affection!  If  she 
only  knew  how  much  I  wish  for  it,  and 
how  much  I  sympathize  with  her!  But 
she  will  never  like  me,  and  all  I  wished  to 
say  to  her  must  be  left  unsaid." 

184 


A  CRYSTAL  AGE  ^5 

"No,  not  so,"  she  said.     "Come  with  me 
to  her  now:  if  you  feel  like  that,  she  will  be 
kind  to  you—how  should  it  be  otherwise?" 
I  greatly  feared  that  she  advised  me  to  take 
an  imprudent  step;  but  she  was  my  guide,  my 
teacher  and  friend  in  the  house,  and  I  resolved 
to  do  as  she  wished.    There  were  no  lights  in 
the  long  gallery  when   we  entered  it  again, 
only  the  white  moonbeams  coming  through  the 
tall  windows  here  and  there  lit  up  a  column 
or  a  group  of  statues,  which  threw  long,  black 
shadows  on  floor  and  wall,  giving  the  chamber 
a    weird    appearance.      Once    more,    when    I 
reached   the  middle  of  the   room,   I  paused, 
for  there  before  me,   ever  bending  forward,' 
sat  that  wonderful  woman  of  stone,  the  moon- 
light streaming  full  on  her  pale,  wistful  face 
and  silvery  hair. 

"Tell  me,  Yoletta,  who  is  this?"  I  whis- 
pered. "Is  it  a  statue  of  some  one  who  lived 
in  this  house?" 

"Yes;  you  can  read  about  her  in  the  history 
of  the  house,  and  in  this  inscription  on  the 
stone.  She  was  a  mother,  and  her  name  was 
Isarte." 

"But  why  has  she  that  strange,  haunting 
expression  on  her  face?    Was  she  unhappy?" 


186  A  CRYSTAL  AGE 

"Oh,  can  you  not  see  that  she  was  un- 
happy! She  endured  many  sorrows,  and  the 
crowning  calamity  of  her  life  was  the  loss  of 
seven  loved  sons.  They  were  away  in  the 
mountains  together,  and  did  not  return  when 
expected:  for  many  years  she  waited  for 
tidings  of  them.  It  was  conjectured  that  a 
great  rock  had  fallen  on  and  crushed  them 
beneath  it.  Grief  for  her  lost  children  made 
her  hair  white,  and  gave  that  expression  to 
her  face." 

"And  when  did  this  happen*?" 
"Over  two  thousand  years  ago." 
"Oh,  then  it  is  a  very  old  family  tradition. 
But    the   statue — when    was    that   made    and 
placed  here1?" 

"She  had  it  made  and  placed  here  herself. 
It  was  her  wish  that  the  grief  she  endured 
should  be  remembered  in  the  house  for  all 
time,  for  no  one  had  ever  suffered  like  her; 
and  the  inscription,  which  she  caused  to  be 
put  on  the  stone,  says  that  if  there  shall 
ever  come  to  a  mother  in  the  house  a  sor- 
row exceeding  hers,  the  statue  shall  be  re- 
moved from  its  place  and  destroyed,  and  the 
fragments  buried  in  the  earth  with  all   for- 


A  CRYSTAL  AGE  187 

gotten  things,  and  the  name  of  Isarte  forgot- 
ten in  the  house." 

It  oppressed  my  mind  to  think  of  so  long  a 
period  of  time  during  which  that  unutterably 
sad  face  had  gazed  down  on  so  many  genera- 
tions of  the  living.  "It  is  most  strange!"  I 
murmured.  "But  do  you  think  it  right, 
Yoletta,  that  the  grief  of  one  person  should 
be  perpetuated  like  that  in  the  house;  for 
who  can  look  on  this  face  without  pain,  even 
when  it  is  remembered  that  the  sorrow  it 
expresses   ended   so   many   centuries    ago*?" 

"But  she  was  a  mother,  Smith,  do  you  not 
understand?  It  would  not  be  right  for  us  to 
wish  to  have  our  griefs  remembered  for  ever, 
to  cause  sorrow  to  those  who  succeed  us;  but 
a  mother  is  different:  her  wishes  are  sacred, 
and  what  she  wills  is  right." 

Her  words  surprised  me  not  a  little,  for  I 
had  heard  of  infallible  men,  but  never  of 
women;  moreover,  the  woman  I  was  now 
going  to  see  was  also  a  "mother  in  the 
house,"  a  successor  to  this  very  Isarte.  Fear- 
ing that  I  had  touched  on  a  dangerous  topic, 
I  said  no  more,  and  proceeding  on  our  way, 
we  soon  reached  the  mother's  room,  the  large 


188  A  CRYSTAL  AGE 

glass  door  of  which  now  stood  wide  open.  In 
the  pale  light  of  the  moon — for  there  was  no 
other  in  the  room — we  found  Chastel  on  the 
couch  where  I  had  seen  her  before,  but  she 
was  lying  extended  at  full  length  now,  and 
had  only  one  attendant  with  her. 

Yoletta  approached  her,  and,  stooping, 
touched  her  lips  to  the  pale,  still  face. 
"Mother,"  she  said,  "I  have  brought  Smith 
again;  he  is  anxious  to  say  something  to 
you,  if  you  will  hear  him." 

"Yes,  I  will  hear  him,"  she  replied.  "Let 
him  sit  near  me;  and  now  go  back,  for  your 
voice  is  needed.  And  you  may  also  leave  me 
now,"  she  added,   addressing  the  other  lady. 

The  two  then  departed  together,  and  I 
proceeded  to  seat  myself  on  a  cushion  beside 
the  couch. 

"What  is  it  you  wish  to  say  to  me?"  she 
asked.  The  words  were  not  very  encouraging, 
but  her  voice  sounded  gentler  now,  and  I 
at  once  began.  "Hush,"  she  said,  before  I 
had  spoken  two  words.  "Wait  until  this 
ends — I  am  listening  to  Yoletta's  voice." 

Through  the  long,  dusky  gallery  and  the 
open  doors  soft  strains  of  music  were  floating 


A  CRYSTAL  AGE  189 

to  us,  and  now,  mingling  with  the  others,  a 
clearer,  bell-like  voice  was  heard,  which  soared 
to  greater  heights;   but   soon   this   ceased   to 
be  distinguishable,   and  then  she  sighed  and 
addressed  me  again.     "Where  have  you  been 
all  the  evening,  for  you  were  not  at  supper?" 
"Did  you  know  that?"  I  asked  in  surprise. 
"Yes,  I  know  everything  that  passes  in  the 
house.     Reading  and  work  of  all  kinds  are  a 
pain  and  weariness.     The  only  thing  left  to 
me  is  to  listen  to  what  others  do  or  say,  and 
to  know  all  their  comings  and  goings.     My 
life  is  nothing  now  but  a  shadow  of  other 
people's   lives." 

"Then,"  I  said,  'T  must  tell  you  how  I 
spent  the  time  after  seeing  you  to-day;  for 
I  was  alone,  and  no  other  person  can  say 
what  I  did.  I  went  away  along  the  river 
until  I  came  to  the  grove  of  great  trees  on 
the  bank,  and  there  I  sat  until  the  moon  role, 
with  my  heart  full  of  unspeakable  pain  and 
bitterness." 

"What  made  you  have  those  feelings'?" 
"When  I  heard  of  you,  and  saw  you,  my 
heart  was  drawn  to  you,  and  I  wished  above 
all    things    in    the   world   to   be    allowed   to 


igo  A  CRYSTAL  AGE 

love  and  serve  you,  and  to  have  a  share  in 
your  affection;  but  your  looks  and  words  ex- 
pressed only  contempt  and  dislike  towards 
me.  Would  it  not  have  been  strange  if  I 
had  not  felt  extremely  unhappy*?" 

"Oh,"  she  replied,  "now  I  can  understand 
the  reason  of  the  surprise  your  words  have 
often  caused  in  the  house!  Your  very 
feelings  seem  unlike  ours.  No  other  person 
would  have  experienced  the  feelings  you 
speak  of  for  such  a  cause.  It  is  right  to 
repent  your  faults,  and  to  bear  the  burden 
of  them  quietly;  but  it  is  a  sign  of  an  un- 
disciplined spirit  to  feel  bitterness,  and  to 
wish  to  cast  the  blame  of  your  suffering  on 
another.  You  forget  that  I  had  reason  to 
be  deeply  offended  with  you.  You  also  forget 
my  continual  suffering,  which  sometimes 
makes  me  seem  harsh  and  unkind  against 
my  will." 

"Your  words  seem  only  sweet  and  gracious 
now,"  I  returned.  "They  have  lifted  a  great 
weight  from  my  heart,  and  I  wish  I  could 
repay  you  for  them  by  taking  some  portion 
of  your  suffering  on  myself." 

"It    is    right    that    you    should    have    that 


A  CRYSTAL  AGE  191 

feeling,  but  idle  to  express  it,"  she  answered 
gravely.  "If  such  wishes  could  be  fulfilled 
my  sufferings  would  have  long  ceased,  since 
any  one  of  my  children  would  gladly  lay 
down  his  life  to  procure  me  ease." 

To  this  speech,  which  sounded  like  another 
rebuke,  I  made  no  reply. 

"Oh,  this  is  bitterness  indeed — a  bitterness 
you  cannot  know,"  she  resumed  after  a  while. 
"For  you  and  for  others  there  is  always  the 
refuge  of  death  from  continued  sufferings :  the 
brief  pang  of  dissolution,  bravely  met,  is 
nothing  in  comparison  with  a  lingering  agony 
like  mine,  with  its  long  days  and  longer 
nights,  extending  to  years,  and  that  great 
blackness  of  the  end  ever  before  the  mind. 
This  only  a  mother  can  know,  since  the  hor- 
ror of  utter  darkness,  and  vain  clinging  to  life, 
even  when  it  has  ceased  to  have  any  hope 
or  joy  in  it,  is  the  penalty  she  must  pay  for 
her  higher  state." 

I  could  not  understand  all  her  words,  and 
only  murmured  in  reply:  "You  are  young  to 
speak  of  death." 

"Yes,  young;  that  is  why  it  is  so  bitter 
to  think  of.     In  old  age  the  feelings  are  not 


192  A  CRYSTAL  AGE 

so  keen."  Then  suddenly  she  put  out  her 
hands  towards  me,  and,  when  I  offered  mine, 
caught  my  fingers  with  a  nervous  grasp  and 
drew  herself  to  a  sitting  position.  "Ah,  why 
must  I  be  afflicted  with  a  misery  others  have 
not  known!"  she  exclaimed  excitedly.  "To 
be  lifted  above  the  others,  when  so  young; 
to  have  one  child  only;  then  after  so  brief 
a  period  of  happiness,  to  be  smitten  with 
barrenness,  and  this  lingering  malady  ever 
gnawing  like  a  canker  at  the  roots  of  life! 
Who  has  suffered  like  me  in  the  house?  You 
only,  Isarte,  among  the  dead.  I  will  go  to 
you,  for  my  grief  is  more  than  I  can  bear; 
and  it  may  be  that  I  shall  find  comfort  even 
in  speaking  to  the  dead,  and  to  a  stone.  Can 
you  bear  me  in  your  arms?"  she  said,  clasping 
me  round  the  neck.  "Take  me  up  in  your 
arms  and  carry  me  to  Isarte." 

I  knew  what  she  meant,  having  so  recently 
heard  the  story  of  Isarte,  and  in  obedience 
to  her  command  I  raised  her  from  the  couch. 
She  was  tall,  and  heavier  than  I  had  expected, 
though  so  greatly  emaciated;  but  the  thought 
that  she  was  Yoletta's  mother,  and  the  mother 
of    the   house,    nerved   me   to   my    task,    and 


A  CRYSTAL  AGE  193 

cautiously  moving  step  by  step  through  the 
gloom,  I  carried  her  safely  to  that  white- 
haired,  moonlit  woman  of  stone  in  the  long 
gallery.  When  I  had  ascended  the  steps  and 
brought  her  sufficiently  near,  she  put  her 
arms  about  the  statue,  and  pressed  its  stony 
lips  with  hers. 

"Isarte,  Isarte,  how  cold  your  lips  are!" 
she  murmured,  in  low,  desponding  tones. 
"Now,  when  I  look  into  these  eyes,  which 
are  yours,  and  yet  not  yours,  and  kiss  these 
stony  lips,  how  sorely  does  the  hunger  in  my 
heart  tempt  me  to  sin!  But  suffering  has 
not  darkened  my  reason;  I  know  it  is  an 
offense  to  ask  anything  of  Him  who  gives 
us  life  and  all  good  things  freely,  and  has 
no  pleasure  in  seeing  us  miserable.  This 
thought  restrains  me;  else  I  would  cry  to 
Him  to  turn  this  stone  to  flesh,  and  for  one 
brief  hour  to  bring  back  to  it  the  vanished 
spirit  of  Isarte.  For  there  is  no  one  living 
that  can  understand  my  pain;  but  you  would 
understand  it,  and  put  my  tired  head  against 
your  breast,  and  cover  me  with  your  grief- 
whitened  hair  as  with  a  mantle.  For  your 
pain  was  like  mine,  and  exceeded  mine,  and 


194  A  CRYSTAL  AGE 

no  soul  could  measure  it,  therefore  in  the 
hunger  of  your  heart  you  looked  far  off  into 
the  future,  where  some  one  would  perhaps 
have  a  like  affliction,  and  suffer  without  hope, 
as  you  suffered,  and  measure  your  pain,  and 
love  your  memory,  and  feel  united  with  you, 
even  over  the  gulf  of  long  centuries  of  time. 
You  would  speak  to  me  of  it  all,  and  tell  me 
that  the  greatest  grief  was  to  go  away  into 
darkness,  leaving  no  one  with  your  blood 
and  your  spirit  to  inherit  the  house.  This 
also  is  my  grief,  Isarte,  for  I  am  barren  and 
eaten  up  by  death,  and  must  soon  go  away 
to  be  where  you  are.  When  I  am  gone,  the 
father  of  the  house  will  take  no  other  one  to 
his  bosom,  for  he  is  old,  and  his  life  is  nearly 
complete;  and  in  a  little  while  he  will  follow 
me,  but  with  no  pain  and  anguish  like  mine 
to  cloud  his  serene  spirit.  And  who  will  then 
inherit  our  placed  Ah,  my  sister,  how  bitter 
to  think  of  it!  for  then  a  stranger  will  be  the 
mother  of  the  house,  and  my  one  only  child 
will  sit  at  her  feet,  calling  her  mother,  serving 
her  with  her  hands,  and  loving  and  worship- 
ing her  with  her  heart!" 

The  excitement  had  now  burned  itself  out: 


A  CRYSTAL  AGE  195 

she  had  dropped  her  head  wearily  on  my 
shoulder,  and  bade  me  take  her  back.  When 
I  had  safely  deposited  her  on  the  couch  again, 
she  remained  for  some  minutes  with  her  face 
covered,   silently  weeping. 

The  scene  in  the  gallery  had  deeply  affected 
me;  now,  however,  while  I  sat  by  her,  ponder- 
ing over  it,  my  mind  reverted  to  that  vanished 
world  of  sorrow  and  different  social  conditions 
in  which  I  had  lived,  and  where  the  lot  of  so 
many  poor  suffering  souls  seemed  to  me  so 
much  more  desolate  than  that  of  this  unhappy 
lady,  who  had,  I  imagined,  much  to  console 
her.     It  even  seemed  to  me  that  the  grief  I 
had    witnessed    was    somewhat    morbid    and 
overstrained;  and,  thinking  that  it  would  per- 
haps divert  her  mind  from  brooding  too  much 
over  her  own  troubles,  I  ventured,  when  she 
had  grown  calm  again,   to  tell  her  some  of 
my    memories.      I    asked    her    to    imagine    a 
state  of  the  world  and  the  human  family,  in 
which    all    women    were,    in    one    sense,    on 
an    equality— all    possessing    the    same    ca- 
pacity   for    suffering;    and    where    all    were, 
or  would  be,  wives  and  mothers,   and  with- 
out any  such  mysterious  remedy  against  lin- 


196  A  CRYSTAL  AGE 

gering  pain  as  she  had  spoken  of.  But  I  had 
not  proceeded  far  with  my  picture  before  she 
interrupted  me. 

"Do  not  say  more,"  she  said,  with  an  accent 
of  displeasure.  "This,  I  suppose,  is  another 
of  those  grotesque  fancies  you  sometimes  give 
expression  to,  about  which  I  heard  a  great 
deal  when  you  first  came  to  us.  That  all 
people  should  be  equal,  and  all  women  wives 
and  mothers  seems  to  me  a  very  disordered 
and  a  very  repulsive  idea.  The  one  conso- 
lation in  my  pain,  the  one  glory  of  my  life, 
could  not  exist  in  such  a  state  as  that,  and 
my  condition  would  be  pitiable  indeed.  All 
others  would  be  equally  miserable.  The  hu- 
man race  would  multiply,  until  the  fruits  of 
the  soil  would  be  insufficient  for  its  support; 
and  earth  would  be  filled  with  degenerate 
beings,  starved  in  body  and  debased  in  mind 
— all  clinging  to  an  existence  utterly  without 
joy.  Life  is  dark  to  me,  but  not  to  others: 
these  are  matters  beyond  you,  and  it  is  pre- 
sumptuous in  one  of  your  condition  to  attempt 
to  comfort  me  with  idle  fancies." 

After  some  moments  of  silence,  she  resumed : 
"The  father  has  said  to-day  that  you  came 


A  CRYSTAL  AGE  197 

to  us  from  an  island  where  even  the  customs 
of  the  people  are  different  from  ours;  and 
perhaps  one  of  their  unhappy  methods  is  to 
seek  to  medicine  a  real  misery  by  imagining 
some  impossible  and  immeasurably  greater 
one.  In  no  other  way  can  I  account  for 
your  strange  words  to  me;  for  I  cannot  be- 
lieve that  any  race  exists  so  debased  as  ac- 
tually to  practice  the  things  you  speak  of. 
Remember  that  I  do  not  ask  or  desire  to  be 
informed.  We  have  a  different  way;  for 
although  it  is  conceivable  that  present  misery 
might  be  mitigated,  or  forgotten  for  a  season, 
by  giving  up  the  soul  to  delusions,  even  by 
summoning  before  the  mind  repulsive  and 
horrible  images,  that  would  be  to  put  to  an 
unlawful  use,  and  to  pervert,  the  brightest 
faculties  our  Father  has  given  us:  therefore 
we  seek  no  other  support  in  all  sufferings 
and  calamities  but  that  of  reason  only.  If 
you  wish  for  my  affection,  you  will  not  speak 
of  such  things  again,  but  will  endeavor  to 
purify  yourself  from  a  mental  vice,  which  may 
sometimes,  in  periods  of  suffering,  give  you 
a  false  comfort  for  a  brief  season,  only  to 
degrade  you,  and  sink  you  later  in  a  deeper 
misery.     You  must  now  leave  me." 


198  A  CRYSTAL  AGE 

This  unexpected  and  sharp  rebuke  did  not 
anger  me,  but  it  made  me  very  sad;  for  I 
now  perceived  plainly  enough  that  no  great 
advantage  would  come  to  me  from  Chastel's 
acquaintance,  since  it  was  necessary  to  be  so 
very  circumspect  with  her.  Deeply  troubled, 
and  in  a  somewhat  confused  state  of  mind,  I 
rose  to  depart.  Then  she  placed  her  thin, 
feverish  white  hand  on  mine.  "You  need 
not  go  away  again,"  she  said,  "to  indulge 
in  bitter  feelings  by  yourself  because  I  have 
said  this  to  you.  You  may  come  with  the 
others  to  see  me  and  talk  to  me  whenever 
I  am  able  to  sit  here  and  bear  it.  I  shall 
not  remember  your  offense,  but  shall  be  glad 
to  know  that  there  is  another  soul  in  the 
house  to  love  and  honor  me." 

With  such  comfort  as  these  words  afforded 
I  returned  to  the  music-room,  and,  finding  it 
empty,  went  out  to  the  terrace,  where  the 
others  were  now  strolling  about  in  knots 
and  couples,  conversing  and  enjoying  the 
lovely  moonlight.  Wandering  a  little  distance 
away  by  myself,  I  sat  down  on  a  bench  under 
a  tree,  and  presently  Yoletta  came  to  me 
there,  and  closely  scrutinized  my  face. 


A  CRYSTAL  AGE  199 

"Have  you  nothing  to  tell  me*?"  she  asked. 
"Are  you  happier  now?" 

"Yes,  dearest,  for  I  have  been  spoken  to 
•very  kindly;  and  I  should  have  been  happier 

if  only "     But  I  checked  myself  in  time, 

and  said  no  more  to  her  about  my  conversa- 
tion with  the  mother.  To  myself  I  said: 
"Oh,  that  island,  that  island!  Why  can't  I 
forget  its  miserable  customs,  or,  at  any  rate, 
stick  to  my  own  resolution  to  hold  my  tongue 
about  them?" 


XIV 

From  that  day  I  was  frequently  allowed  to 
enter  the  Mother's  Room,  but,  as  I  had  feared, 
these  visits  failed  to  bring  me  into  any  closer 
relationship  with  the  lady  of  the  house.  She 
had  indeed  forgotten  my  offense:  I  was  one 
of  her  children,  sharing  equally  with  the  oth- 
ers in  her  impartial  affection,  and  privileged 
to  sit  at  her  feet  to  relate  to  her  the  incidents 
of  the  day,  or  describe  all  I  had  seen,  and 
sometimes  to  touch  her  thin  white  hand  with 
my  lips.  But  the  distance  separating  us  was 
not  forgotten.  At  the  two  first  interviews 
she  had  taught  me,  once  for  all,  that  it  was 
for  me  to  love,  honor,  and  serve  her,  and 
that  anything  beyond  that — any  attempt  to 
win  her  confidence,  to  enter  into  her  thoughts, 
or  make  her  understand  my  feelings  and  aspi- 
rations— was  regarded  as  pure  presumption  on 
my  part.     The   result   was   that   I   was   less 

200 


A  CRYSTAL  AGE  201 

happy  than  I  had  been  before  knowing  her: 
my  naturally  buoyant  and  hopeful  temper  be- 
came tinged  with  melancholy,  and  that  vi- 
sion of  exquisite  bliss  in  the  future,  which 
had  floated  before  me,  luring  me  on,  now 
began  to  look  pale,  and  to  seem  further  and 
further  away. 

After  my  walk  with  Yoletta — if  it  can  be 
called  a  walk — I  began  to  look  out  for  the 
rainbow  lilies,  and  soon  discovered  that  every- 
where under  the  grass  they  were  beginning 
to  sprout  from  the  soil.  At  first  I  found 
them  in  the  moist  valley  of  the  river,  but 
very  soon  they  were  equally  abundant  on  the 
higher  lands,  and  even  on  barren,  stony 
places,  where  they  appeared  latest.  I  felt 
very  curious  about  these  flowers,  of  which 
Yoletta  had  spoken  so  enthusiastically,  and 
watched  the  slow  growth  of  the  long,  slender 
buds  from  day  to  day  with  considerable  im- 
patience. At  length,  in  a  moist  hollow  of 
the  forest,  I  was  delighted  to  find  the  full- 
blown flower.  In  shape  it  resembled  a  tulip, 
but  was  more  open,  and  the  color  a  most  vivid 
orange  yellow;  it  had  a  slight  delicate  per- 
fume,  and  was  very  pretty,   with  a  peculiar 


202  A  CRYSTAL  AGE 

waxy  gloss  on  the  thick  petals,  still,  I  was 
rather  disappointed,  since  the  name  of  "rainbow 
lily,"  and  Yoletta's  words,  had  led  me  to  expect 
a  many-colored  flower  of  surpassing  beauty. 

I  plucked  the  lily  carefully,  and  was  taking 
it  home  to  present  it  to  her,  when  all  at  once  I 
remembered  that  only  on  one  occasion  had  I 
seen  flowers  in  her  hand,  and  in  the  hands 
of  the  others,  and  that  was  when  they  were 
burying  their  dead.  They  never  wore  a  flow- 
er, nor  had  I  ever  seen  one  in  the  house,  not 
even  in  that  room  where  Chastel  was  kept  a 
prisoner  by  her  malady,  and  where  her  great- 
est delight  was  to  have  nature  in  all  its  beauty 
and  fragrance  brought  to  her  in  the  conversation 
of  her  children.  The  only  flowers  in  the  house 
were  in  their  illuminations,  and  those  wrought 
in  metal  and  carved  in  wood,  and  the  immor- 
tal, stony  flowers  of  many  brilliant  hues  in 
their  mosaics.  I  began  to  fear  that  there  was 
some  superstition  which  made  it  seem  wrong 
to  them  to  gather  flowers,  except  for  funeral 
ceremonies,  and  afraid  of  offending  from  want 
of  thought,  I  dropped  the  lily  on  the  ground, 
and  said  nothing  about  it  to  any  one. 

Then,    before    any   more    open    lilies    were 


A  CRYSTAL  AGE  203 

found,  an  unexpected  sorrow  came  to  me. 
After  changing  my  dress  on  returning  from 
the  fields  one  afternoon,  I  was  taken  to  the 
hall  of  judgment,  and  at  once  jumped  to  the 
conclusion  that  I  had  again  unwittingly  fallen 
into  disgrace;  but  on  arriving  at  that  uncom- 
fortable apartment  I  perceived  that  this  was 
not  the  case.  Looking  round  at  the  assembled 
company  I  missed  Yoletta,  and  my  heart  sank 
in  me,  and  I  even  wished  that  my  first  im- 
pression had  proved  correct.  On  the  great 
stone  table,  before  which  the  father  was  seat- 
ed, lay  an  open  folio,  the  leaf  displayed  be- 
ing only  illuminated  at  the  top  and  inner 
margin;  the  colored  part  at  the  top  I  noticed 
was  torn,  the  rent  extending  down  to  about 
the  middle  of  the  page. 

Presently  the  dear  girl  appeared,  with  tear- 
ful eyes  and  flushed  face,  and  advancing  hur- 
riedly to  the  father,  she  stood  before  him  with 
downcast  eyes. 

"My  daughter,  tell  me  how  and  why  you 
did  tins'?"  he  demanded,  pointing  to  the  open 
volume. 

"Oh,  father,  look  at  this,"  she  returned, 
half-sobbing,   and  touching  the  lower  end  of 


204  A  CRYSTAL  AGE 

the  colored  margin  with  her  finger.  "Do  you 
see  how  badly  it  is  colored?  And  I  had 
spent  three  days  in  altering  and  retouching  it, 
and  still  it  displeased  me.  Then,  in  sudden 
anger,  I  pushed  the  book  from  me,  and  seeing 
it  slipping  from  the  stand  I  caught  the  leaf  to 
prevent  it  from  falling,  and  it  was  torn  by  the 
weight  of  the  book.  Oh,  dear  father,  will 
you  forgive  me1?" 

"Forgive  you,  my  daughter?  Do  you  not 
know  how  it  grieves  my  heart  to  punish  you; 
but  how  can  this  offense  to  the  house  be  for- 
given, which  must  stand  in  evidence  against 
us  from  generation  to  generation'?  For  we 
cease  to  be,  but  the  house  remains;  and  the 
writing  we  leave  on  it,  whether  it  be  good  or 
evil,  that  too  remains  for  ever.  An  unkind 
word  is  an  evil  thing,  an  unkind  deed  a  worse, 
but  when  these  are  repented  they  may  be  for- 
given and  forgotten.  But  an  injury  done  to 
the  house  cannot  be  forgotten,  for  it  is  the  flaw 
in  the  stone  that  keeps  its  place,  the  crude, 
inharmonious  color  which  cannot  be  washed 
out  with  water.  Consider,  my  daughter,  in 
the  long  life  of  the  house,  how  many  unborn 
men  will   turn  the  leaves  of  this  book,   and 


A  CRYSTAL  AGE  205 

coming  to   this   leaf  will   be   offended   at   so 
grievous  a  disfigurement!     If  we  of  this  gen- 
eration were  destined  to  live   for  ever,   then 
it  might  be  written  on  this  page  for  a  pun- 
ishment  and    warning:      'Yoletta    tore    it   in 
her  anger.'     But  we  must  pass  away  and  be 
nothing    to    succeeding    generations,     and    it 
would  not  be  right  that  Yoletta's  name  should 
be  remembered  for  the  wrong  she  did  to  the 
house,  and  all  she  did  for  its  good  forgotten." 
A  painful  silence  ensued,  then,  lifting  her 
tear-stained  face,  she  said:     "Oh  father,  what 
must  my  punishment  be*?" 

"Dear  child,  it  will  be  a  light  one,  for  we 
consider  your  youth  and  impulsive  nature,  and 
also  that  the  wrong  you  did  was  partly  the 
result  of  accident.     For  thirty  days  you  must 
live  apart  from  us,   subsisting  on  bread  and 
water,  and  holding  intercourse  with  one  per- 
son only,  who  will  assist  you  with  your  work 
and  provide  you  with  all  things  necessary." 
This  seemed  to  me  a  harsh,  even  a  cruel 
punishment  for  so  trivial  an  offense,  or  acci- 
dent, rather;  but  she  was  not  perhaps  of  the 
same  mind,  for  she  kissed  his  hand,  as  if  in 
gratitude  for  his  leniency. 


206  A  CRYSTAL  AGE 

"Tell  me,  child,"  he  said,  putting  his  hand 
on  her  head,  and  regarding  her  with  misty  eyes, 
"who  shall  attend  you  in  your  seclusion"?" 

"Edra,"  she  murmured;  and  the  other, 
coming  forward,  took  her  by  the  hand  and 
led  her  away. 

I  gazed  eagerly  after  her  as  she  retired, 
hungering  for  one  look  from  her  dear  eyes 
before  that  long  separation;  but  they  were 
filled  with  tears  and  bent  on  the  floor,  and  in 
a  moment  she  was  gone  from  sight. 

The  succeeding  days  were  to  me  dreary 
beyond  description.  For  the  first  time  I  be- 
came fully  conscious  of  the  strength  of  a  pas- 
sion which  had  now  become  a  consuming  fire 
in  my  breast,  and  could  only  end  in  utter 
misery — perhaps  in  destruction — or  else  in  a 
degree  of  happiness  no  mortal  had  ever  tasted 
before.  I  went  about  listlessly,  like  one  on 
whom  some  heavy  calamity  has  fallen:  all 
interest  in  my  work  was  lost;  my  food  seemed 
tasteless;  study  and  conversation  had  become 
a  weariness;  even  in  those  divine  concerts, 
which  fitly  brought  each  tranquil  day  to  its 
close,  there  was  no  charm  now,  since  Yoletta's 
voice,  which  love  had  taught  my  dull  ear  to 


A  CRYSTAL  AGE  207 

distinguish,  no  longer  had  any  part  in  it.  I 
was  not  allowed  to  enter  the  Mother's  Room 
of  an  evening  now,  and  the  exclusion  extended 
also  to  the  others,  Edra  only  excepted;  for  at 
this  hour,  when  it  was  customary  for  the  fam- 
ily to  gather  in  the  music-room,  Yoletta  was 
taken  from  her  lonely  chamber  to  be  with 
her  mother.  This  was  told  me,  and  I  also 
elicited,  by  means  of  some  roundabout  ques- 
tioning, that  it  was  always  in  the  mother's 
power  to  have  any  person  undergoing  punish- 
ment taken  to  her,  she  being,  as  it  were, 
above  the  law.  She  could  even  pardon  a  de- 
linquent and  set  him  free  if  she  felt  so 
minded,  although  in  this  case  she  had  not 
chosen  to  exercise  her  prerogative,  probably 
because  her  "sufferings  had  not  clouded  her 
understanding."  They  were  treating  her  very 
hardly — father  and  mother  both — I  thought 
in  my  bitterness. 

The  gradual  opening  of  the  rainbow  lilies 
served  only  to  remind  me  every  hour  and 
every  minute  of  that  bright  young  spirit  thus 
harshly  deprived  of  the  pleasure  she  had  so 
eagerly    anticipated.     She,    above    them    all, 


208  A  CRYSTAL  AGE 

rejoiced  in  the  beauty  of  this  visible  world, 
regarding  nature  in  some  of  its  moods  and 
aspects  with  a  feeling  almost  bordering  on 
adoration;  but,  alas!  she  alone  was  shut  out 
from  this  glory  which  God  had  spread  over 
the  earth  for  the  delight  of  all  his  children. 
Now  I  knew  why  these  autumnal  flowers 
were  called  rainbow  lilies,  and  remembered 
how  Yoletta  had  told  me  that  they  gave  a 
beauty  to  the  earth  which  could  not  be  de- 
scribed or  imagined.  The  flowers  were  all 
undoubtedly  of  one  species,  having  the  same 
shape  and  perfume,  although  varying  greatly 
in  size,  according  to  the  nature  of  the  soil  on 
which  they  grew.  But  in  different  situations 
they  varied  in  color,  one  color  blending  with, 
or  passing  by  degrees  into  another,  wherever 
the  soil  altered  its  character.  Along  the  val- 
leys, where  they  first  began  to  bloom,  and 
in  all  moist  situations,  the  hue  was  yellow, 
varying,  according  to  the  amount  of  moisture 
in  different  places,  from  pale  primrose  to  deep 
orange,  this  passing  again  into  vivid  scarlet 
and  reds  of  many  shades.  On  the  plains  the 
reds  prevailed,  changing  into  various  purples 
on  hills  and  mountain  slopes;  but  high  on  the 


A  CRYSTAL  AGE  209 

mountains  the  color  was  blue;  and  this  also 
had  many  gradations,  from  the  lower  deep 
cornflower  blue  to  a  delicate  azure  on  the 
summits,  resembling  that  of  the  forget-me-not 
and  hairbell. 

The  weather  proved  singularly  favorable 
to  those  who  spent  their  time  in  admiring 
the  lilies,  and  this  now  seemed  to  be  almost 
the  only  occupation  of  the  inmates,  excepting, 
of  course,  sick  Chastel,  imprisoned  Yoletta, 
and  myself — I  being  too  forlorn  to  admire 
anything.  Calm,  bright  days  without  a  cloud 
succeeded  each  other,  as  if  the  very  elements 
held  the  lilies  sacred  and  ventured  not  to 
cast  any  shadow  over  their  mystic  splendor. 
Each  morning  one  of  the  men  would  go  out 
some  distance  from  the  house  and  blow  on 
a  horn,  which  could  be  heard  distinctly  two 
miles  away;  and  presently  a  number  of  horses, 
in  couples  and  troops,  would  come  galloping 
in,  after  which  they  would  remain  all  the 
morning  grazing  and  gamboling  about  the 
house.  These  horses  were  now  in  constant 
requisition,  all  the  members  of  the  family, 
male  and  female,  spending  several  hours  every 
day  in  careering  over  the  surrounding  country, 


210  A  CRYSTAL  AGE 

seemingly  without  any  particular  object.  The 
contagion  did  not  affect  me,  however,  for, 
although  I  had  always  been  a  bold  rider  (in 
my  own  country),  and  excessively  fond  of 
horseback  exercise,  their  fashion  of  riding 
without  bridles,  and  on  diminutive  straw 
saddles,  seemed  to  me  neither  safe  nor 
pleasant. 

One  morning  after  breakfasting,  I  took  my 
ax,  and  was  proceeding  slowly,  immersed  in 
thought,  to  the  forest,  when  hearing  a  slight 
swishing  sound  of  hoofs  on  the  grass,  I  turned 
and  beheld  the  venerable  father,  mounted  on 
his  charger,  and  rushing  away  towards  the 
hills  at  an  insanely  break-neck  pace.  His 
long  garment  was  gathered  tightly  round  his 
spare  form,  his  feet  drawn  up  and  his  head 
bent  far  forward,  while  the  wind  of  his  speed 
divided  his  beard,  which  flew  out  in  two  long 
streamers  behind.  All  at  once  he  caught  sight 
of  me,  and,  touching  the  animal's  neck,  swept 
gracefully  round  in  narrowing  circles,  each 
circle  bringing  him  nearer,  until  he  came  to 
a  stand  at  my  side;  then  his  horse  began 
rubbing  his  nose  on  my  hand,  its  breath  feel- 
ing like  fire  on  my  skin. 


A  CRYSTAL  AGE  211 

"Smith,"  said  he,  with  a  grave  smile,  "if 
you  cannot  be  happy  unless  you  are  labor- 
ing in  the  forest  with  your  ax,  you  must 
proceed  with  your  wood-cutting;  but  I  con- 
fess it  surprises  me  as  much  to  see  you  go- 
ing to  work  on  a  day  like  this,  as  it  would 
to  see  you  walking  inverted  on  your  hands, 
and  dangling  your  heels  in  the  air." 

"Why4?"  said  I,  surprised  at  this  speech. 

"If  you  do  not  know  I  must  tell  you.  At 
night  we  sleep;  in  the  morning  we  bathe; 
we  eat  when  we  are  hungry,  converse  when 
we  feel  inclined,  and  on  most  days  labor  a 
certain  number  of  hours.  But  more  than 
these  things,  which  have  a  certain  amount 
of  pleasure  in  them,  are  the  precious  mo- 
ments when  nature  reveals  herself  to  us  in  all 
her  beauty.  We  give  ourselves  wholly  to  her 
then,  and  she  refreshes  us;  the  splendor  fades, 
but  the  wealth  it  brings  to  the  soul  remains 
to  gladden  us.  That  must  be  a  dull  spirit 
that  cannot  suspend  its  toil  when  the  sun  is 
setting  in  glory,  or  the  violet  rainbow  ap- 
pears on  the  cloud.  Every  day  brings  us 
special  moments  to  gladden  us,  just  as  we 
have   in   the   house   every   day   our   time   of 


212  A  CRYSTAL  AGE 

melody  and  recreation.  But  this  supreme  and 
more  enduring  glory  of  nature  comes  only 
once  every  year;  and  while  it  lasts,  all  labor, 
except  that  which  is  pressing  and  necessary, 
is  unseemly,  and  an  offense  to  the  Father  of 
the  world."  He  paused,  but  I  did  not  know 
what  to  say  in  reply,  and  presently  he  re- 
sumed: "My  son,  there  are  horses  waiting 
for  you,  and  unless  you  are  more  unlike  us 
in  mind  than  I  ever  imagined,  you  will  now 
take  one  and  ride  to  the  hills,  where,  owing 
to  the  absence  of  forests,  the  earth  can  now  be 
seen   at   its   best." 

I  was  about  to  thank  him  and  turn  back, 
but  the  thought  of  Yoletta,  to  whom  each 
heavy  day  now  seemed  a  year,  oppressed  my 
heart,  and  I  continued  standing  motionless, 
with  downcast  eyes,  wishing,  yet  fearing,  to 
speak. 

"Why  is  your  mind  troubled,  my  son?" 
he  said  kindly. 

"Father,"  I  answered,  that  word  which  I 
now  ventured  to  use  for  the  first  time  trem- 
bling from  my  lips,  "the  beauty  of  the  earth 
is  very  much  to  me,  but  I  cannot  help  re- 
membering that  to  Yoletta  it  is  even  more, 


A  CRYSTAL  AGE  213 

and  the  thought  takes  away  all  my  pleasure. 
The  flowers  will  fade,  and  she  will  not  see 
them." 

"My  son,  I  am  glad  to  hear  these  words," 
he  answered,  somewhat  to  my  surprise,  for 
I  had  greatly  feared  that  I  had  adopted  too 
bold  a  course.  'Tor  I  see  now,"  he  con- 
tinued, "that  this  seeming  indifference,  which 
gave  me  some  pain,  does  not  proceed  from 
an  incapacity  on  your  part  to  feel  as  we  do, 
but  from  a  tender  love  and  compassion — that 
most  precious  of  all  our  emotions,  which  will 
serve  to  draw  you  closer  to  us.  I  have  also 
thought  much  of  Yoletta  during  these  beauti- 
ful days,  grieving  for  her,  and  this  morning 
I  have  allowed  her  to  go  out  into  the  hills,  so 
that  during  this  day,  at  least,  she  will  be 
able  to  share  in  our  pleasure." 

Scarcely  waiting  for  another  word  to  be 
spoken,  I  flew  back  to  the  house,  anxious 
enough  for  a  ride  now.  The  little  straw  sad- 
dle seemed  now  as  comfortable  as  a  couch, 
nor  was  the  bridle  missed;  for,  nerved  with 
that  intense  desire  to  find  and  speak  to  my 
love,  I  could  have  ridden  securely  on  the  slip- 
pery back  of  a  giraffe,   charging  over  rough 


214  A  CRYSTAL  AGE 

ground  with  a  pack  of  lions  at  its  heels.  Away 
I  went  at  a  speed  never  perhaps  attained  by 
any  winner  of  the  Derby,  which  made  the 
shining  hairs  of  my  horse's  mane  whistle  in 
the  still  air;  down  valleys,  up  hills,  flying  like 
a  bird  over  roaring  burns,  rocks,  and  thorny 
bushes,  never  pausing  until  I  was  far  away 
among  those  hills  where  that  strange  accident 
had  befallen  me,  and  from  which  I  had  recov- 
ered to  find  the  earth  so  changed.  I  then  as- 
cended a  great  green  hill,  the  top  of  which 
must  have  been  over  a  thousand  feet  above  the 
surrounding  country.  When  I  had  at  length 
reached  this  elevation,  which  I  did  walking 
and  climbing,  my  steed  docilely  scrambling  up 
after  me,  the  richness  and  novelty  of  the  unim- 
aginable and  indescribable  scene  which  opened 
before  me  affected  me  in  a  strange  way,  smit- 
ing my  heart  with  a  pain  intense  and  unfa- 
miliar. For  the  first  time  I  experienced  within 
myself  that  miraculous  power  the  mind  pos- 
sesses of  reproducing  instantaneously,  and 
without  perspective,  the  events,  feelings,  and 
thoughts  of  long  years — an  experience  which 
sometimes  comes  to  a  person  suddenly  con- 
fronted with  death,  and  in  other  moments  of 


A  CRYSTAL  AGE  215 

supreme  agitation.    A  thousand  memories  and 
a  thousand  thoughts  were  stirring  in  me:  I 
was  conscious  now,  as  I  had  not  been  before, 
of  the  past  and  the  present,  and  these  two  ex- 
isted in  my  mind,  yet  separated  by  a  great 
gulf  of  time — a  blank  and  a  nothingness  which 
yet  oppressed  me  with  its  horrible  vastness. 
How  aimless  and  solitary,  how  awful  my  posi- 
tion seemed!     It  was  like  that  of  one  beneath 
whose  feet  the  world  suddenly  crumbles  into 
ashes  and  dust,   and  is  scattered  throughout 
the  illimitable  void,  while  he  survives,  blown 
to  some  far  planet  whose  strange  aspect,  how- 
ever beautiful,  fills  him  with  an  undefinable 
terror.    And  I  knew,  and  the  knowledge  only 
intensified   my  pain,   that  my   agitation,   the 
strugglings   of  my  soul   to   recover   that   lost 
life,   were   like   the  vain   wing-beats  of  some 
woodland  bird,  blown  away  a  thousand  miles 
over  the  sea,  into  which  it  must  at  last  sink 
down  and  perish. 

Such  a  mental  state  cannot  endure  for  more 
than  a  few  moments,  and  passing  away,  it  left 
me  weary  and  despondent.  With  dull,  joyless 
eyes  I  continued  gazing  for  upwards  of  an 
hour  on  the  prospect  beneath  me;  for  I  had 


216  A  CRYSTAL  AGE 

now  given  up  all  hopes  of  seeing  Yoletta,  not 
yet  having  encountered  a  single  person  since 
starting  for  my  ride.  All  about  me  the  sum- 
mit was  dotted  with  small  lilies  of  a  delicate 
blue,  but  at  a  little  distance  the  sober  green  of 
the  grass  became  absorbed,  as  it  were,  in  the 
brighter  flower-tints,  and  the  neighboring 
summits  all  appeared  of  a  pure  cerulean  hue. 
Lower  down  this  passed  into  the  purples  of 
the  slopes  and  the  reds  of  the  plains,  while 
the  valleys,  fringed  with  scarlet,  were  like 
rivers  of  crocus-colored  fire.  Distance,  and 
the  light,  autumnal  haze,  had  a  subduing  and 
harmonizing  effect  on  the  sea  of  brilliant 
color,  and  further  away  on  the  immense  hori- 
zon it  all  faded  into  the  soft  universal  blue. 
Over  this  flowery  paradise  my  eyes  wandered 
restlessly,  for  my  heart  was  restless  in  me, 
and  had  lost  the  power  of  pleasure.  With  a 
slight  bitterness  I  recalled  some  of  the  words 
the  father  had  spoken  to  me  that  morning. 
It  was  all  very  well,  I  thought,  for  this  ven- 
erable graybeard  to  talk  about  refreshing  the 
soul  with  the  sight  of  all  this  beauty;  but  he 
seemed  to  lose  sight  of  the  important  fact 
that  there  was  a  considerable  difference  in  our 


A  CRYSTAL  AGE  217 

respective  ages,  that  the  raging  hunger  of  the 
heart,  which  he  had  doubtless  experienced  at 
one  time  of  his  life,  was,  like  bodily  hunger, 
not  to  be  appeased  with  splendid  sunsets, 
rainbows  and  rainbow  lilies,  however  beautiful 
they  might  seem  to  the  eye. 

Presently,  on  a  second  and  lower  summit 
of  the  long  mountain  I  had  ascended,  I 
caught  sight  of  a  person  on  horseback,  stand- 
ing motionless  as  a  figure  of  stone.  At  that 
distance  the  horse  looked  no  bigger  than  a 
greyhound,  yet  so  marvelously  transparent 
was  the  mountain  air,  that  I  distinctly  recog- 
nized Yoletta  in  the  rider.  I  started  up,  and 
sprang  joyfully  on  to  my  own  horse,  and  wav- 
ing my  hand  to  attract  her  attention,  galloped 
recklessly  down  the  slope;  but  when  I  reached 
the  opposing  summit  she  was  no  longer  there, 
nor  anywhere  in  sight,  and  it  was  as  if  the 
earth  had   opened   and  swallowed  her. 


XV 

During  Yoletta's  seclusion,  my  education  was 
not  allowed  to  suffer,  her  place  as  instructress 
having  been  taken  by  Edra.  I  was  pleased 
with  this  arrangement,  thinking  to  derive  some 
benefit  from  it,  beyond  what  she  might  teach 
me;  but  very  soon  I  was  forced  to  abandon  all 
hope  of  communicating  with  the  imprisoned 
girl  through  her  friend  and  jailer.  Edra  was 
much  disturbed  at  the  suggestion;  for  I  did 
venture  to  suggest  it,  though  in  a  tentative, 
roundabout  form,  not  feeling  sure  of  my 
ground:  previous  mistakes  had  made  me  cau- 
tious. Her  manner  was  a  sufficient  warning; 
and  I  did  not  broach  the  subject  a  second 
time.  One  afternoon,  however,  I  met  with 
a  great  and  unexpected  consolation,  though 
even  this  was  mixed  with  some  perplexing 
matters. 

One  day,  after  looking  long  and  earnestly 

218 


A  CRYSTAL  AGE  219 

into  my  face,  said  my  gentle  teacher  to  me: 
"Do  you  know  that  you  are  changed4?  All 
your  gay  spirits  have  left  you,  and  you  are 
pale  and  thin  and  sad.     Why  is  tins'?" 

My  face  crimsoned  at  this  very  direct  ques- 
tion, for  I  knew  of  that  change  in  me,  and 
went  about  in  continual  fear  that  others 
would  presently  notice  it,  and  draw  their  own 
conclusions.  She  continued  looking  at  me, 
until  for  very  shame  I  turned  my  face  aside; 
for  if  I  had  confessed  that  separation  from 
Yoletta  caused  my  dejection,  she  would  know 
what  that  feeling  meant,  and  I  feared  that 
any  such  premature  declaration  would  be  the 
ruin  of  my  prospects. 

"I  know  the  reason,  though  I  ask  you," 
she  continued,  placing  a  hand  on  my  shoulder. 
"You  are  grieving  for  Yoletta — I  saw  it  from 
the  first.  I  shall  tell  her  how  pale  and  sad 
you  have  grown — how  different  from  what 
you  were.  But  why  do  you  turn  your  face 
from  me*?" 

I  was  perplexed,  but  her  sympathy  gave 
me  courage,  and  made  me  determined  to  give 
her  my  confidence.  "If  you  know,"  said  I, 
"that   I   am   grieving   for   Yoletta,    can   you 


220  A  CRYSTAL  AGE 

not  also  guess  why  I  hesitate  and  hide  my 
face  from  you?" 

"No;  why  is  it?  You  love  me  also,  though 
not  with  so  great  a  love;  but  we  do  love  each 
other,  Smith,  and  you  can  confide  in  me?' 

I  looked  into  her  face  now,  straight  into 
her  transparent  eyes,  and  it  was  plain  to  see 
that  she  had  not  yet  guessed  my  meaning. 

"Dearest  Edra,"  I  said,  taking  her  hand, 
"I  love  you  as  much  as  if  one  mother  had 
given  us  birth.  But  I  love  Yoletta  with  a 
different  love — not  as  one  loves  a  sister.  She 
is  more  to  me  than  any  one  else  in  the  world; 
so  much  is  she  that  life  without  her  would 
be  a  burden.  Do  you  not  know  what  that 
means'?"  And  then,  remembering  Yoletta's 
words  on  the  hills,  I  added:  "Do  you  not 
know  of  more  than  one  kind  of  love?" 

"No,"  she  answered,  still  gazing  inquiringly 
into  my  face.  "But  I  know  that  your  love 
for  her  so  greatly  exceeds  all  others,  that  it 
is  like  a  different  feeling.  I  shall  tell  her, 
since  it  is  sweet  to  be  loved,  and  she  will  be 
glad  to  know  it." 

"And  after  you  have  told  her,  Edra,  shall 
you  make  known  her  reply  to  me?" 


A  CRYSTAL  AGE  221 

"No,  Smith;  it  is  an  offense  to  suggest, 
or  even  to  think,  such  a  thing,  however  much 
you  may  love  her,  for  she  is  not  allowed  to 
converse  with  any  one  directly  or  through  me. 
She  told  me  that  she  saw  you  on  the  hills, 
and  that  you  tried  to  go  to  her,  and  it  dis- 
tressed her  very  much.  But  she  will  forgive 
you  when  I  have  told  her  how  great  your  love 
is,  that  the  desire  to  look  on  her  face  made 
you  forget  how  wrong  it  was  to  approach  her." 

How  strange  and  incomprehensible  it 
seemed  that  Edra  had  so  misinterpreted  my 
feeling!  It  seemed  also  to  me  that  they  all, 
from  the  father  ,of  the  house  downwards,  were 
very  blind  indeed  to  set  down  so  strong  an 
emotion  to  mere  brotherly  affection.  I  had 
wished,  yet  feared,  to  remove  the  scales  from 
their  eyes;  and  now,  in  an  unguarded  mo- 
ment, I  had  made  the  attempt,  and  my  gentle 
confessor  had  failed  to  understand  me.  Nev- 
ertheless, I  extracted  some  comfort  from 
this  conversation;  for  Yoletta  would  know 
how  greatly  my  love  exceeded  that  of  her  own 
kindred,  and  I  hoped  against  hope  that  a  re- 
sponsive emotion  would  at  last  awaken  in  her 
breast. 


222  A  CRYSTAL  AGE 

When  the  last  of  those  leaden-footed  thirty- 
days  arrived — the  day  on  which,  according 
to  my  computation,  Yoletta  would  recover  lib- 
ecty  before  the  sun  set — I  rose  early  from  the 
straw  pallet  where  I  had  tossed  all  night,  pre- 
vented from  sleeping  by  the  prospect  of  re- 
union, and  the  fever  of  impatience  I  was 
in.  The  cold  river  revived  me,  and  when 
we  were  assembled  in  the  breakfast-room  I 
observed  Edra  watching  me,  with  a  curious, 
questioning  smile  on  her  lips.  I  asked  her 
the  reason. 

"You  are  like  a  person  suddenly  recovered 
from  sickness,"  she  replied.  "Your  eyes 
sparkle  like  sunshine  on  the  water,  and  your 
cheeks  that  were  so  pallid  yesterday  burn 
redder  than  an  autumn  leaf."  Then,  smiling, 
she  added  these  precious  words:  "Yoletta 
will  be  glad  to  return  to  us,  more  on  your 
account  than  her  own." 

After  we  had  broken  our  fast,  I  determined 
to  go  to  the  forest  and  spend  the  day  there. 
For  many  days  past  I  had  shirked  woodcut- 
ting; but  now  it  seemed  impossible  for  me 
to  settle  down  to  any  quiet,  sedentary  kind 
of  work,  the  consuming  impatience  and  bound- 


A  CRYSTAL  AGE  223 

less  energy  I  felt  making  me  wish  for  some 
unusually  violent  task,  such  as  would  exhaust 
the   body  and   give,   perhaps,    a   rest   to   the 
mind.     Taking  my  ax,  and  the  usual  small 
basket  of  provisions   for  my  noonday  meal, 
I  left  the  house;  and  on  this  morning  I  did 
not  walk,  but  ran  as  if  for  a  wager,  taking 
long,    flying   leaps   over   bushes    and   streams 
that  had  never  tempted  me  before.     Arrived 
at  the  scene  of  action,  I  selected  a  large  tree 
which  had  been  marked  out  for  felling,  and 
for  hours  I  hacked  at  it  with  an  energy  almost 
superhuman;  and  at  last,   before  I  had  felt 
any  disposition  to  rest,  the  towering  old  giant, 
bowing  its  head  and  rustling  its  sere  foliage 
as  if  in  eternal  farewell  to  the  skies,  came 
with  a  mighty  crash  to  the  earth.     Scarcely 
was  it  fallen  before  I  felt  that  I  had  labored 
too  long  and  violently:  the  dry,  fresh  breeze 
stung  my  burning  cheeks  like  needles  of  ice, 
my  knees  trembled  under  me,  and  the  whole 
world   seemed   to   spin   round;    then,    casting 
myself   upon   a   bed   of   chips    and   withered 
leaves,   I  lay  gasping  for  breath,   with  only 
life  enough  left  in  me  to  wonder  whether  I 
had   fainted   or   not.      Recovered    at    length 


224  A  CRYSTAL  AGE 

from  this  exhausted  condition,  I  sat  up,  and 
rejoiced  to  observe  that  half  the  day — that 
last  miserable  day — had  already  flown.  Then 
the  thoughts  of  the  approaching  evening,  and 
all  the  happiness  it  would  bring,  inspired  me 
with  fresh  zeal  and  strength,  and,  starting 
to  my  feet,  and  taking  no  thought  of  my 
food,  I  picked  up  the  ax  and  made  a  fresh 
onslaught  on  the  fallen  tree.  I  had  already 
accomplished  more  than  a  day's  work,  but 
the  fever  in  my  blood  and  brain  urged  me 
on  to  the  arduous  task  of  lopping  off  the  huge 
branches;  and  my  exertions  did  not  cease 
until  once  more  the  world,  with  everything 
on  it,  began  revolving  like  a  whirligig,  com- 
pelling me  to  desist  and  take  a  still  longer 
rest.  And  sitting  there  I  thought  only  of 
Yoletta.  How  would  she  look  after  that 
long  seclusion?  Pale,  and  sad  too  perhaps; 
and  her  sweet,  soulful  eyes — oh,  would  I  now 
see  in  them  that  new  light  for  which  I  had 
watched  and  waited  so  long? 

Then,  while  I  thus  mused,  I  heard,  not  far 
off,  a  slight  rustling  sound,  as  of  a  hare  start- 
led at  seeing  me,  and  bounding  away  over  the 
withered  leaves;  and  lifting  up  my  eyes  from 


A  CRYSTAL  AGE  225 

the  ground,  I  beheld  Yoletta  herself  hastening 
towards  me,  her  face  shining  with  joy.  I 
sprang  forward  to  meet  her,  and  in  another 
moment  she  was  locked  in  my  arms.  That 
one  moment  of  unspeakable  happiness  seemed 
to  out-weigh  a  hundred  times  all  the  misery 
I  had  endured.  "Oh,  my  sweet  darling — at 
last,  at  last,  my  pain  is  ended!"  I  murmured, 
while  pressing  her  again  and  again  to  my 
heart,  and  kissing  that  dear  face,  which  looked 
now  so  much  thinner  than  when  I  had  last 
seen  it. 

She  bent  back  her  head,  like  Genevieve 
in  the  ballad,  to  look  me  in  the  face,  her  eyes 
filled  with  tears — crystal,  happy  drops,  which 
dimmed  not  their  brightness.  But  her  face 
was  pale,  with  a  pensive  pallor  like  that  of 
the  Gloire  de  Dijon  rose;  only  now  excite- 
ment had  suffused  her  cheeks  with  the  tints 
of  that  same  rose — that  red  so  unlike  the 
bloom  on  other  faces  in  vanished  days;  so 
tender  and  delicate  and  precious  above  all 
tints  in  nature! 

"I  know,"  she  spoke,  "how  you  were  griev- 
ing for  me,  that  you  were  pale  and  dejected. 
Oh,  how  strange  you  should  love  me  so  much !" 


226  A  CRYSTAL  AGE 

"Strange,  darling — that  word  again!  It  is 
the  one  sweetness  and  joy  of  life.  And  are 
you  not  glad  to  be  loved  ?" 

"Oh,  I  cannot  tell  you  how  glad;  but  am 
I  not  here  in  your  arms  to  show  it*?  When 
I  heard  that  you  had  gone  to  the  wood  I  did 
not  wait,  but  ran  here  as  fast  as  I  could.  Do 
you  remember  that  evening  on  the  hill,  when 
you  vexed  me  with  questions,  and  I  could 
not  understand  your  words'?  Now,  when  I 
love  you  so  much  more,  I  can  understand 
them  better.  Tell  me,  have  I  not  done  as 
you  wished,  and  given  myself  to  you,  body 
and  soul?  How  thirty  days  have  changed 
you!     Oh,  Smith,  do  you  love  me  so  much*?" 

"I  love  you  so  much,  dear,  that  if  you  were 
to  die,  there  would  be  no  more  pleasure  in 
life  for  me,  and  I  should  prefer  to  lie  near 
you  underground.  All  day  long  I  am  think- 
ing of  you,  and  when  I  sleep  you  are  in  all 
my  dreams." 

She  still  continued  gazing  into  my  face, 
those  happy  tears  still  shining  in  her  eyes, 
listening  to  my  words;  but  alas!  on  that 
sweet,  beautiful  face,  so  full  of  changeful 
expression,    there    was    not    the    expression    I 


A  CRYSTAL  AGE  227 

sought,  and  no  sign  of  that  maidenly  shame 
which  gave  to  Genevieve  in  the  ballad  such 
an  exquisite  grace  in  her  lover's  eyes. 

"I  also  had  dreams  of  you,"  she  answered. 
"They  came  to  me  after  Edra  had  told  me 
how  pale  and  sad  you  had  grown." 

"Tell  me  one  of  your  dreams,  darling." 

"I  dreamed  that  I  was  lying  awake  on  my 
bed,  with  the  moon  shining  on  me;  I  was 
cold,  and  crying  bitterly  because  I  had  been 
left  so  long  alone.  All  at  once  I  saw  you 
standing  at  my  side  in  the  moonlight.  'Poor 
Yoletta,'  you  said,  'your  tears  have  chilled 
you  like  winter  rain.'  Then  you -kissed  them 
dry,  and  when  you  had  put  your  arms  about 
me,  I  drew  your  face  against  my  bosom,  and 
rested  warm  and  happy  in  your  love." 

Oh,  how  her  delicious  words  maddened  me! 
Even  my  tongue  and  lips  suddenly  became 
dry  as  ashes  with  the  fever  in  me,  and  could 
only  whisper  huskily  when  I  strove  to  answer. 
I  released  her  from  my  arms  and  sat  down 
on  the  fallen  tree,  all  my  blissful  raptures 
turned  to  a  great  despondence.  Would  it 
always  be  thus — would  she  continue  to  em- 
brace  me,    and    speak    words    that   simulated 


228  A  CRYSTAL  AGE 

passion  while  no  such  feeling  touched  her 
heart?  Such  a  state  of  things  could  not  en- 
dure, and  my  passion,  mocked  and  baffled 
again  and  again,  would  rend  me  to  pieces, 
and  hurl  me  on  to  madness  and  self-destruc- 
tion. For  how  many  men  had  been  driven  by 
love  to  such  an  end,  and  the  women  they  had 
worshiped,  and  miserably  died  for,  compared 
with  Yoletta,  were  like  creatures  of  clay  com- 
pared with  one  of  the  immortals.  And  was 
she  not  a  being  of  a  higher  order  than  myself? 
It  was  folly  to  think  otherwise.  But  how 
had  mortals  always  fared  when  they  aspired 
to  mate  with  celestials'?  I  tried  then  to  re- 
member something  bearing  on  this  important 
point,  but  my  mind  was  becoming  strangely 
confused.  I  closed  my  eyes  to  think,  and 
presently  opening  them  again,  saw  Yoletta 
kneeling  before  me,  gazing  up  into  my  face 
with  an  alarmed  expression. 

"What  is  the  matter,  Smith,  you  seem 
ill?"  she  said;  and  then,  laying  her  fresh 
palm  on  my  forehead,  added:  "Your  head 
burns  like  fire." 

"No  wonder,"  I  returned.  "I'm  worrying 
my  brains  trying  to  remember  all  about  them. 


A  CRYSTAL  AGE  229 

What  were  their  names,  and  what  did  they 
do  to  those  who  loved  them — can't  you  tell 
me?" 

"Oh,  you  are  ill — you  have  a  fever  and 
may  die!"  she  exclaimed,  throwing  her  arms 
about  my  neck  and  pressing  her  cheek  to 
mine. 

I  felt  a  strange  imbecility  of  mind,  yet  it 
seemed  to  anger  me  to  be  told  that  I  was  ill. 
"I  am  not  ill,"  I  protested  feebly.  "I  never 
felt  better  in  my  life!  But  can't  you  answer 
me — who  were  they,  and  what  did  they  do? 
Tell  me,  or  I  shall  go  mad." 

She  started  up,  and  taking  the  small  metal 
whistle  hanging  at  her  side,  blew  a  shrill  note 
that  seemed  to  pierce  my  brain  like  a  steel 
weapon.  I  tried  to  get  up  from  my  seat  on 
the  trunk,  but  only  slipped  down  to  the 
ground.  A  dull  mist  and  gloom  seemed  to  be 
settling  down  on  everything;  daylight,  and 
hope  with  it,  was  fast  forsaking  the  world. 
But  something  was  coming  to  us — out  of  that 
universal  mist  and  darkness  closing  around  us 
it  came  bounding  swiftly  through  the  wood — 
a  huge  gray  wolf!  No,  not  a  wolf — a  wolf 
was  nothing  to  it!     A  mighty,   roaring  lion 


230  A  CRYSTAL  AGE 

crashing  through  the  forest;  a  monster  ever  in- 
creasing in  size,  vast  and  of  horrible  aspect, 
surpassing  all  monsters  of  the  imagination — 
all  beasts,  gigantic  and  deformed,  that  had 
ever  existed  in  past  geologic  ages;  a  lion  with 
teeth  like  elephants'  tusks,  its  head  clothed  as 
with  a  black  thunder-cloud,  through  which  its 
eyes  glared  like  twin,  blood-red  suns!  And 
she — my  love — with  a  cry  on  her  lips,  was 
springing  forth  to  meet  it — lost,  lost  for  ever! 
I  struggled  frantically  to  rise  and  fly  to  her 
assistance,  and  rose,  after  many  efforts,  to 
my  knees,  only  to  fall  again  to  the  earth, 
insensible. 


XVI 

The  violent  fever  into  which  I  had  fallen 
did  not  abate  until  the  third  day,  when  I 
fell  into  a  profound  slumber,  from  which  I 
woke  refreshed  and  saved.  I  did  not,  on 
awakening,  find  myself  in  my  own  familiar 
cell,  but  in  a  spacious  apartment  new  to  me, 
on  a  comfortable  bed,  beside  which  Edra 
was  seated.  Almost  my  first  feeling  was  one 
of  disappointment  at  not  seeing  Yoletta  there, 
and  presently  I  began  to  fear  that  in  the 
ravings  of  delirium  I  had  spoken  things  which 
had  plucked  the  scales  from  the  eyes  of  my 
kind  friends  in  a  very  rough  way  indeed,  and 
that  the  being  I  loved  best  had  been  per- 
manently withdrawn  from  my  sight.  It  was 
a  blessed  relief  when  Edra,  in  answer  to 
the  questions  I  put  with  some  heart-quakings 
to   her,    informed   me   that   I   had    talked   a 

great   deal   in   my   fever,   but   unintelligibly, 
231 


232  A  CRYSTAL  AGE 

continually  asking  questions  about  Venus, 
Diana,  Juno,  and  many  other  persons  whose 
names  had  never  before  been  heard  in  the 
house.  How  fortunate  that  my  crazy  brain 
had  thus  continued  vexing  itself  with  this 
idle  question!  She  also  told  me  that  Yoletta 
had  watched  day  and  night  at  my  side,  that 
at  last,  when  the  fever  left  me,  and  I  had 
fallen  into  that  cooling  slumber,  she  too,  with 
her  hand  on  mine,  had  dropped  her  head  on 
the  pillow  and  fallen  asleep.  Then,  without 
waking  her,  they  had  carried  her  away  to 
her  own  room,  and  Edra  had  taken  her  place 
by  my  side. 

"Have  you  nothing  more  to  ask?"  she  said 
at  length,  with  an  accent  of  surprise. 

"No;  nothing  more.  What  you  have  told 
me  has  made  me  very  happy — what  more  can 
I  wish  to  know1?" 

"But  there  is  more  to  tell  you,  Smith.  We 
know  now  that  your  illness  is  the  result  of 
your  own  imprudence;  and  as  soon  as  you  are 
well  enough  to  leave  your  room  and  bear  it, 
you  must  suffer  the  punishment." 

"What!  Punished  for  being  ill!"  I  ex- 
claimed,   sitting    bolt    upright    in    my    bed. 


A  CRYSTAL  AGE  233 

"What  do  you  mean,  Edra?  I  never  heard 
such  outrageous  nonsense  in  my  life!" 

She  was  disturbed  at  this  outburst,  but  qui- 
etly and  gravely  repeated  that  I  must  cer- 
tainly be  punished  for  my  illness. 

Remembering  what  their  punishments  were, 
I  had  the  prospect  of  a  second  long  separa- 
tion from  Yoletta,  and  the  thought  of  such 
excessive  severity,  or  rather  of  such  cruel  in- 
justice, made  me  wild.  "By  Heaven,  I  shall 
not  submit  to  it!"  I  exclaimed.  "Punished 
for  being  ill — who  ever  heard  of  such  a 
thing!  I  suppose  that  by-and-by  it  will  be 
discovered  that  the  bridge  of  my  nose  is  not 
quite  straight,  or  that  I  can't  see  round  the 
corner,  and  that  also  will  be  set  down  as  a 
crime,  to  be  expiated  in  solitary  confinement, 
on  a  bread-and-water  diet!  No,  you  shall 
not  punish  me;  rather  than  give  in  to  such 
tyranny  I'll  walk  off  and  leave  the  house  for 
ever!" 

She  regarded  me  with  an  expression  almost 
approaching  to  horror  on  her  gentle  face,  and 
for  some  moments  made  no  reply.  Then  I 
remembered  that  if  I  carried  out  that  insane 
threat  I  should  indeed  lose  Yoletta,  and  the 


234  A  CRYSTAL  AGE 

very  thought  of  such  a  loss  was  more  than 
I  could  endure;  and  for  a  moment  I  almost 
hated  the  love  which  made  me  so  helpless 
and  miserable — so  powerless  to  oppose  their 
stupid  and  barbarous  practices.  It  would 
have  been  sweet  then  to  have  felt  free — free 
to  fling  them  a  curse,  and  go  away,  shaking 
the  dust  of  their  house  from  my  shoes,  sup- 
posing that  any  dust  had  adhered  to  them. 
Then  Edra  began  to  speak  again,  and  grave- 
ly and  sorrowfully,  but  without  a  touch  of 
austerity  in  her  tone  or  manner,  censured 
me  for  making  use  of  such  irrational  lan- 
guage, and  for  allowing  bitter,  resentful 
thoughts  to  enter  my  heart.  But  the  despond- 
ence and  sullen  rage  into  which  I  had  been 
thrown  made  me  proof  even  against  the  medi- 
cine of  an  admonition  imparted  so  gently, 
and,  turning  my  face  away,  I  stubbornly  re- 
fused to  make  any  reply.  For  a  while  she 
was  silent,  but  I  misjudged  her  when  I  im- 
agined that  she  would  now  leave  me,  offended, 
to  my  own  reflections. 

"Do  you  not  know  that  you  are  giving  me 
pain*?"  she  said  at  last,  drawing  a  little  closer 
to  me.     "A  little  while  ago  you  told  me  that 


A  CRYSTAL  AGE  235 

you  loved  me:  has  that  feeling  faded  so  soon, 
or  do  you  take  any  pleasure  in  wounding  those 
you  love1?" 

Her  words,  and,  more  than  her  words,  her 
tender,  pleading  tone,  pierced  me  with  com- 
punction, and  I  could  not  resist.  "Edra,  my 
sweet  sister,  do  not  imagine  such  a  thing!" 
I  said.  "I  would  rather  endure  many  punish- 
ments than  give  you  pain.  My  love  for  you 
cannot  fade  while  I  have  life  and  understand- 
ing. It  is  in  me  like  greenness  in  the  leaf 
— that  beautiful  color  which  can  only  be 
changed  by  sere  decay." 

She  smiled  forgiveness,  and  with  a  humid 
brightness  in  her  eyes,  which  somehow  made 
me  think  of  that  joy  of  the  angels  over  one 
sinner  that  repenteth,  bent  down  and  touched 
her  lips  to  mine.  "How  can  you  love  any 
one  more  than  that,  Smith1?"  she  said.  "Yet 
you  say  that  your  love  for  Yoletta  exceeds 
all  others." 

"Yes,  dear,  exceeds  all  others,  as  the  light 
of  the  sun  exceeds  that  of  the  moon  and  the 
stars.  Can  you  not  understand  that — has  no 
man  ever  loved  you  with  a  love  like  that, 
my  sister?" 


236  A  CRYSTAL  AGE 

She  shook  her  head  and  sighed.  Did  she 
not  understand  my  meaning  now — had  not 
my  words  brought  back  some  sweet  and 
sorrowful  memory'?  With  her  hands  folded 
idly  on  her  lap,  and  her  face  half  averted, 
she  sat  gazing  at  nothing.  It  seemed  im- 
possible that  this  woman,  so  tender  and  so 
beautiful,  should  never  have  experienced  in 
herself  or  witnessed  in  another,  the  feeling  I 
had  questioned  her  about.  But  she  made  no 
further  reply  to  my  words;  and  as  I  lay  there 
watching  her,  the  drowsy  spirit  the  fever  had 
left  in  me  overcame  my  brain,  and  I  slept 
once  more. 

For  several  days,  which  brought  me  so  little 
strength  that  I  was  not  permitted  to  leave 
the  sick-room,  I  heard  nothing  further  about 
my  punishment,  for  I  purposely  refrained  from 
asking  any  questions,  and  no  person  appeared 
inclined  to  bring  forward  so  disagreeable  a 
subject.  At  length  I  was  pronounced  well 
enough  to  go  about  the  house,  although  still 
very  feeble,  and  I  was  conducted,  not  to  the 
judgment-room,  where  I  had  expected  to  be 
taken,  but  to  the  Mother's  Room;  and  there 
I  found  the  father  of  the  house,  seated  with 


A  CRYSTAL  AGE  237 

Chastel,  and  with  them  seven  or  eight  of  the 
others.  They  all  welcomed  me,  and  seemed 
glad  to  see  me  out  again;  but  I  could  not 
help  remarking  a  certain  subdued,  almost 
solemn  air  about  them,  which  seemed  to 
remind  me  that  I  was  regarded  as  an 
offender  already  found  guilty,  who  had  now 
been  brought  up  to  receive  judgment. 

"My  son,"  said  the  father,  addressing  me 
in  a  calm,  judicial  tone  which  at  once  put  my 
last  remaining  hopes  to  flight,  "it  is  a  con- 
solation to  us  to  know  that  your  offense  is 
of  such  a  nature  that  it  cannot  diminish  our 
esteem  for  you,  or  loosen  the  bonds  of 
affection  which  unite  you  to  us.  You  are 
still  feeble,  and  perhaps  a  little  confused  in 
mind  concerning  the  events  of  the  last  few 
days:  I  do  not  therefore  press  you  to  give 
an  account  of  them,  but  shall  simply  state 
your  offense,  and  if  I  am  mistaken  in  any 
particular  you  shall  correct  me.  The  great 
love  you  have  for  Yoletta,"  he  continued 
— and  at  this  I  started  and  blushed  pain- 
fully, but  the  succeeding  words  served  to 
show  that  I  had  only  too  little  cause  for 
alarm — "the  great  love  you  have  for  Yoletta 


238  A  CRYSTAL  AGE 

caused  you  much  suffering  during  her  thirty 
days'  seclusion  from  us,  so  that  you  lost 
all  enjoyment  of  life,  and  eating  little,  and 
being  in  continual  dejection,  your  strength 
was  much  diminished.  On  the  last  day  you 
were  so  much  excited  at  the  prospect  of 
reunion  with  her,  that  you  went  to  your 
task  in  the  woods  almost  fasting,  and  prob- 
ably after  spending  a  restless  night.  Tell  me 
if  this  is  not  so?" 

"I  did  not  sleep  that  night,"  I  replied, 
somewhat  huskily. 

"Unrefreshed  by  sleep  and  with  lessened 
strength,"  he  continued,  "you  went  to  the 
woods,  and  in  order  to  allay  that  excitement 
in  your  mind,  you  labored  with  such  energy 
that  by  noon  you  had  accomplished  a  task 
which,  in  another  and  calmer  condition  of 
mind  and  body,  would  have  occupied  you 
more  than  one  day.  In  thus  acting  you  had 
already  been  guilty  of  a  serious  offense 
against  yourself;  but  even  then  you  might 
have  escaped  the  consequences  if,  after 
finishing  your  work,  you  had  rested  and 
refreshed  yourself  with  food  and  drink. 
This,    however,    you    neglected    to    do;    for 


A  CRYSTAL  AGE  239 

when  you  had  fallen  insensible  to  the  earth, 
and  Yoletta  had  called  the  dog  and  sent  it 
to  the  house  to  summon  assistance,  the  food 
you  had  taken  with  you  was  found  untasted 
in  the  basket.  Your  life  was  thus  placed  in 
great  peril;  and  although  it  is  good  to  lay 
life  down  when  it  has  become  a  burden  to 
ourselves  and  others,  being  darkened  by  that 
failure  of  power  from  which  there  is  no 
recovery,  wantonly  or  carelessly  to  endanger 
it  in  the  flower  of  its  strength  and  beauty 
is  a  great  folly  and  a  great  offense.  Con- 
sider how  deep  our  grief  would  have  been, 
especially  the  grief  of  Yoletta,  if  this  culpable 
disregard  of  your  own  safety  and  well-being 
had  ended  fatally,  as  it  came  so  near  end- 
ing! It  is  therefore  just  and  righteous  that 
an  offense  of  such  a  nature  should  be  recom- 
pensed; but  it  is  a  light  offense,  not  like  one 
committed  against  the  house,  or  even  against 
another  person,  and  we  also  remember  the 
occasion  of  it,  since  it  was  no  unworthy 
motive,  but  exceeding  love,  which  clouded 
your  judgment,  and  therefore,  taking  all  these 
things  into  account,  it  was  my  intention  to 
put  you  away  from  us  for  the  space  of  thirteen 
days." 


240  A  CRYSTAL  AGE 

Here  he  paused,  as  if  expecting  me  to 
make  some  reply.  He  had  reproved  me  so 
gently,  even  approving  of  the  emotion, 
although  still  entirely  in  the  dark  as  to  its 
meaning,  which  had  caused  my  illness,  that 
I  was  made  to  feel  very  submissive,  and  even 
grateful  to  him. 

"It  is  only  just,"  I  replied,  "that  I  should 
suffer  for  my  fault,  and  you  have  tempered 
justice  with  more  mercy  than  I  deserve." 

"You  speak  with  the  wisdom  of  a  chastened 
spirit,  my  son,"  he  said,  rising  and  placing  his 
hand  on  my  head;  "and  your  words  gladden 
me  all  the  more  for  knowing  that  you  were 
filled  with  surprise  and  resentment  when  told 
that  your  offense  was  one  deserving  punish- 
ment. And  now,  my  son,  I  have  to  tell  you 
that  you  will  not  be  separated  from  us,  for 
the  mother  of  the  house  has  willed  that  your 
offense  shall  be  pardoned." 

I  looked  in  surprise  at  Chastel,  for  this  was 
very  unexpected:  she  was  gazing  at  my  face 
with  the  light  of  a  strange  tenderness  in  her 
eyes,  never  seen  there  before.  She  extended 
her  hand,  and,  kneeling  before  her,  I  took  it 
in  mine  and  raised  it  to  my  lips,  and  tried, 


A  CRYSTAL  AGE  241 

with  poor  success,  to  speak  my  thanks  for  this 
rare  and  beautiful  act  of  mercy.  Then  the 
others  surrounded  me  to  express  their  con- 
gratulations, the  men  pressing  my  hands,  but 
not  so  the  women,  for  they  all  freely  kissed 
me;  but  when  Yoletta,  coming  last,  put  her 
white  arms  about  my  neck  and  pressed  her 
lips  to  mine,  the  ecstasy  I  felt  was  so  greatly 
overbalanced  by  the  pain  of  my  position,  and 
the  thought,  now  almost  a  conviction,  that  I 
was  powerless  to  enlighten  them  with  regard 
to  the  nature  of  the  love  I  felt  for  her,  that  I 
almost  shrank  from  her  dear  embrace. 


XVII 

My  attack  of  illness,  although  sharp,  had 
passed  off  so  quickly  that  I  confidently  looked 
to  complete  restoration  to  my  former  vigorous 
state  of  health  in  a  very  short  time.  Never- 
theless, many  days  went  by,  and  I  failed  to 
recover  strength,  but  remained  pretty  much  in 
that  condition  of  body  in  which  I  had  quitted 
the  sick-room.  This  surprised  and  distressed 
me  at  first,  but  in  a  little  time  I  began  to 
get  reconciled  to  such  a  state,  and  even  to 
discover  that  it  had  certain  advantages,  the 
chief  of  which  was  that  the  tumult  of  my 
mind  was  over  for  a  season,  so  that  I  craved 
for  nothing  very  eagerly.  My  friends  advised 
me  to  do  no  work;  but  not  wishing  to  eat 
the  bread  of  idleness — although  the  bread 
was  little  now,  as  I  had  little  appetite — I 
made  it  a  rule  to  go  every  morning  to  the 

workhouse,    and    occupy    myself    for    two    or 

242 


A  CRYSTAL  AGE  24s 

three  hours  with  some  light,  mechanical  task 
which  put  no  strain  on  me,  physical  or  mental. 
Even  this  playing  at  work  fatigued  me. 
Then,  after  changing  my  dress,  I  would 
repair  to  the  music-room  to  resume  my 
search  after  hidden  knowledge  in  any  books 
that  happened  to  be  there;  for  I  could  read 
now,  a  result  which  my  sweet  schoolmistress 
had  been  the  first  to  see,  and  at  once  she 
had  abandoned  the  lessons  I  had  loved  so 
much,  leaving  me  to  wander  at  will,  but 
without  a  guide,  in  that  wilderness  of  a 
strange  literature.  I  had  never  been  to  the 
library,  and  did  not  even  know  in  what  part 
of  the  house  it  was  situated;  nor  had  I  ever 
expressed  a  wish  to  see  it.  And  that  for  two 
reasons:  one  was,  that  I  had  already  half- 
resolved — my  resolutions  were  usually  of 
that  complexion — never  to  run  the  risk  of 
appearing  desirous  of  knowing  too  much; 
the  other  and  weightier  reason  was,  that  I 
had  never  loved  libraries.  They  oppress  me 
with  a  painful  sense  of  my  mental  inferiority; 
for  all  those  tens  of  thousands  of  volumes, 
containing  so  much  important  but  unappreci- 
ated matter,  seem  to  have  a  kind  of  collective 


244  A  CRYSTAL  AGE 

existence,  and  to  look  down  on  me,  like  a 
man  with  great,  staring,  owlish  eyes,  as  an 
intruder  on  sacred  ground — a  barbarian, 
whose  proper  place  is  in  the  woods.  It  is  a 
mere  fancy,  I  know,  but  it  distresses  me,  and 
I  prefer  not  to  put  myself  in  the  way  of  it. 
Once  in  a  book  I  met  with  a  scornful  passage 
about  people  with  "bodily  constitutions  like 
those  of  horses,  and  small  brains,"  which  made 
me  blush  painfully;  but  in  the  very  next 
passage  the  writer  makes  amends,  saying 
that  a  man  ought  to  think  himself  well  off 
if,  in  the  lottery  of  life,  he  draws  the  prize 
of  a  healthy  stomach  without  a  mind,  that  it 
is  better  than  a  fine  intellect  with  a  crazy 
stomach.  I  had  drawn  the  healthy  stomach — 
liver,  lungs,  and  heart  to  match — and  had 
never  felt  dissatisfied  with  my  prize.  Now, 
however,  it  seemed  expedient  that  I  should 
give  some  hours  each  day  to  reading;  for  so 
far  my  conversations  and  close  intimacy  with 
the  people  of  the  house  had  not  dissipated 
the  cloud  of  mystery  in  which  their  customs 
were  hid;  and  by  customs  I  here  refer  to 
those  relating  to  courtship  and  matrimony 
only,    for   that   was   to   me   the   main   thing. 


A  CRYSTAL  AGE  245 

The  books  I  read,  or  dipped  into,  were  all 
highly  interesting,  especially  the  odd  volumes 
I  looked  at  belonging  to  that  long  series  on 
the  Houses  of  the  World,  for  these  abounded 
in  marvelous  and  entertaining  matter.  There 
were  also  histories  of  the  house,  and  works 
on  arts,  agriculture,  and  various  other  subjects, 
but  they  were  not  what  I  wanted. 

After  three  or  four  hours  spent  in  these 
fruitless  researches,  I  would  proceed  to  the 
Mothers  Room,  where  I  was  now  permitted 
to  enter  freely  every  afternoon,  and  when 
there,  to  remain  as  long  as  I  wished.  It 
was  so  pleasant  that  I  soon  dropped  into 
the  custom  of  remaining  until  supper-time 
compelled  me  to  leave  it,  Chastel  invariably 
treating  me  now  with  a  loving  tenderness  of 
manner  which  seemed  strange  when  I  recalled 
the  extremely  unfavorable  impression  I  had 
made  at  our  first  interview. 

It  was  never  my  nature  to  be  indolent,  or 
to  love  a  quiet,  dreamy  existence:  on  the 
contrary,  my  fault  had  lain  in  the  opposite 
direction,  unlimited  muscular  exercise  being 
as  necessary  to  my  well-being  as  fresh  air 
and  good  food,  and  the  rougher  the  exercise 


246  A  CRYSTAL  AGE 

the  better  I  liked  it.  But  now,  in  this  novel 
condition  of  languor,  I  experienced  a  wonderful 
restfulness  both  of  body  and  mind,  and  in  the 
Mother's  Room,  resting  as  if  some  weariness 
of  labor  still  clung  to  me,  breathing  and 
steeped  in  that  fragrant,  summer-like  atmos- 
phere, I  had  long  intervals  of  perfect  in- 
activity and  silence,  while  I  sat  or  reclined,  not 
thinking  but  in  a  reverie,  while  many  dreams 
of  pleasures  to  come  drifted  in  a  vague, 
vaporous  manner  through  my  brain.  The  very 
character  of  the  room — its  delicate  richness,  the 
exquisitely  harmonious  disposition  of  colors 
and  objects,  and  the  illusions  of  nature  pro- 
duced on  the  mind — seemed  to  lend  itself  to 
this  unaccustomed  mood,  and  to  confirm  me 
in  it. 

The  first  impression  produced  was  one  of 
brightness:  coming  to  it  by  way  of  the  long, 
dim  sculpture  gallery  was  like  passing  out  into 
the  open  air,  and  this  effect  was  partly  due 
to  the  white  and  crystal  surfaces  and  the 
brilliancy  of  the  colors  where  any  color 
appeared.  It  was  spacious  and  lofty,  and  the 
central  arched  or  domed  portion  of  the  roof, 
which  was  of  a  light  turquoise  blue,  rested  on 


A  CRYSTAL  AGE  247 

graceful  columns  of  polished  crystal.  The  doors 
were  of  amber-colored  glass  set  in  agate 
frames;  but  the  windows,  eight  in  number, 
formed  the  principal  attraction.  On  the  glass, 
hill  and  mountain  scenery  was  depicted,  the 
summits  in  some  of  them  appearing  beyond 
wide,  barren  plains,  whitened  with  the  noonday 
splendor  and  heat  of  midsummer,  untempered 
by  a  cloud,  the  soaring  peaks  showing  a  pearly 
luster  which  seemed  to  remove  them  to  an 
infinite  distance.  To  look  out,  as  it  were, 
from  the  imitation  shade  of  such  an  arbor, 
or  pavilion,  over  those  far-off,  sun-lit  expanses 
where  the  light  appeared  to  dance  and  quiver 
as  one  gazed,  was  a  never-failing  delight. 
Such  was  its  effect  on  me,  combined  with  that 
of  the  mother's  new  tender  graciousness,  result- 
ing I  knew  not  whether  from  compassion  or 
affection,  that  I  could  have  wished  to  remain 
a  permanent  invalid  in  her  room. 

Another  cause  of  the  mild  kind  of  happiness 
I  now  experienced  was  the  consciousness  of 
a  change  in  my  own  mental  disposition,  which 
made  me  less  of  an  alien  in  the  house;  for  I 
was  now  able,  I  imagined,  to  appreciate  the 
beautiful  character  of  my  friends,  their  crystal 


248  A  CRYSTAL  AGE 

purity  of  heart  and  the  religion  they  professed. 
Far  back  in  the  old  days  I  had  heard,  first 
and  last,  a  great  deal  about  sweetness  and 
light  and  Philistines,  and  not  quite  knowing 
what  this  grand  question  was  all  about,  and 
hearing  from  some  of  my  friends  that  I  was 
without  the  qualities  they  valued  most,  I  there- 
after proclaimed  myself  a  Philistine,  and  was 
satisfied  to  have  the  controversy  ended  in 
that  way,  so  far  as  it  concerned  me  personally. 
Now,  however,  I  was  like  one  to  whom  some 
important  thing  has  been  told,  who,  scarcely 
hearing  and  straightway  forgetting,  goes  about 
his  affairs;  but,  lying  awake  at  night  in  the 
silence  of  his  chamber,  recalls  the  unheeded 
words  and  perceives  their  full  significance. 
My  sojourn  with  this  people — angelic  women 
and  mild-eyed  men  with  downy,  unrazored 
lips,  so  mild  in  manner  yet  in  their  arts 
"laying  broad  bases  for  eternity" — above  all 
the  invalid  hours  spent  daily  in  the  Mother's 
Room,  had  taught  me  how  unlovely  a  creature 
I  had  been.  It  would  have  been  strange 
indeed  if,  in  such  an  atmosphere,  I  had  not 
absorbed  a  little  sweetness  and  light  into  my 
system. 


A  CRYSTAL  AGE  249 

In  this  sweet  refuge — this  slumberous  valley 
where  I  had  been  cast  up  by  that  swift  black 
current  that  had  borne  me  to  an  immeasurable 
distance  on  its  bosom,  and  with  such  a  change 
going  on  within  me— I  sometimes  thought  that 
a  little  more  and  I  would  touch  that  serene, 
enduring  bliss  which  seemed  to  be  the  normal 
condition  of  my  fellow-inmates.     My  passion 
for  Yoletta  now  burned  with  a  gentle  flame, 
which  did  not  consume,  but  only  imparted  an 
agreeable    sense    of    warmth    to    the    system. 
When  she  was  there,  sitting  with  me  at  her 
mother's  feet,  sometimes  so  near  that  her  dark, 
shining  hair  brushed  against  my  cheek,   and 
her  fragrant  breath  came   on  my   face;   and 
when  she  caressed  my  hand,  and  gazed  full 
at  me  with  those  dear  eyes  that  had  no  shadow 
of  regret  or  anxiety  in  them,  but  only  un- 
fathomable  love,    I   could   imagine   that   our 
union   was    already    complete,    that   she    was 
altogether  and  eternally  mine. 

I  knew  that  this  could  not  continue.  Some- 
times I  could  not  prevent  my  thoughts  from 
flying  away  from  the  present;  then  suddenly 
the  complexion  of  my  dream  would  change, 
darkening  like  a  fair  landscape  when  a  cloud 


250  A  CRYSTAL  AGE 

obscures  the  sun.  Not  forever  would  the 
demon  of  passion  slumber  and  dream  in  my 
breast;  with  recovered  strength  it  would  wake 
again,  and,  ever  increasing  in  power  and  ever 
baffled  of  its  desire,  would  raise  once  more 
that  black  tempest  of  the  past  to  overwhelm 
me.  Other  darker  visions  followed:  I  would 
see  myself  as  in  a  magic  glass,  lying  with 
upturned,  ghastly  face,  with  many  people  about 
me,  hurrying  to  and  fro,  wringing  their  hands 
and  weeping  aloud  with  grief,  shuddering  at 
the  abhorred  sight  of  blood  on  their  sacred, 
shining  floors;  or,  worse  still,  I  saw  nvyself 
shivering  in  sordid  rags  and  gaunt  with  long- 
lasting  famine,  a  fugitive  in  some  wintry, 
desolate  land,  far  from  all  human  companion- 
ship, the  very  image  of  Yoletta  scorched  by 
madness  to  formless  ashes  in  my  brain;  and 
for  all  sensations,  feelings,  memories,  thoughts, 
nothing  left  to  me  but  a  distorted  likeness  of 
the  visible  world,  and  a  terrible  unrest  urging 
me,  as  with  a  whip  of  scorpions,  ever  on  and 
on,  to  ford  yet  other  black,  icy  torrents,  and 
tear  myself  bleeding  through  yet  other  thorny 
thickets,  and  climb  the  ramparts  of  yet  other 
gigantic,  barren  hills. 


A  CRYSTAL  AGE  251 

But  these  moments  of  terrible  depression, 
new  to  my  life,  were  infrequent,  and  seldom 
lasted  long.  Chastel  was  my  good  angel;  a 
word,  a  touch  from  her  hand,  and  the  ugly 
spirits  would  vanish.  She  appeared  to  possess 
a  mysterious  faculty — perhaps  only  the  keen 
insight  and  sympathy  of  a  highly  spiritualized 
nature — which  informed  her  of  much  that  was 
passing  in  my  heart:  if  a  shadow  came  there 
when  she  had  no  wish  or  strength  to  converse, 
she  would  make  me  draw  close  to  her  seat,  and 
rest  her  hand  on  mine,  and  the  shadow  would 
pass  from  me. 

I  could  not  help  reflecting  often  and  wonder- 
ingly  at  this  great  change  in  her  manner 
towards  me.  Her  eyes  dwelt  lovingly  on 
me,  and  her  keenest  suffering,  and  the  unfor- 
tunate blundering  expressions  I  frequently  let 
fall,  seemed  equally  powerless  to  wring  one 
harsh  or  impatient  word  from  her.  I  was  not 
now  only  one  among  her  children,  privileged 
to  come  and  sit  at  her  feet,  to  have  with 
them  a  share  in  her  impartial  affection;  and 
remembering  that  I  was  a  stranger  in  the 
house,  and  compared  but  poorly  with  the 
others,  the  undisguised  preference  she  showed 


252  A  CRYSTAL  AGE 

for  me,  and  the  wish  to  have  me  almost 
constantly  with  her,  seemed  a  great  mystery. 

One  afternoon,  as  I  sat  alone  with  her,  she 
made  the  remark  that  my  reading  lessons  had 
ceased. 

"Oh  yes,  I  can  read  perfectly  well  now,"  I 
answered.  "May  I  read  to  you  from  this 
book6?"  Saying  which,  I  put  my  hand  towards 
a  volume  lying  on  the  couch  at  her  side.  It 
differed  from  the  other  books  I  had  seen,  in  its 
smaller  size  and  blue  binding. 

"No,  not  in  this  book,"  she  said,  with  a 
shade  of  annoyance  in  her  voice,  putting  out 
her  hand  to  prevent  my  taking  it. 

"Have  I  made  another  mistake?"  I  said, 
withdrawing  my  hand.    "I  am  very  ignorant." 

"Yes,  poor  boy,  you  are  very  ignorant,"  she 
returned,  placing  her  hand  on  my  forehead. 
"You  must  know  that  this  is  a  mother's  book, 
and  only  a  mother  may  read  in  it." 

"I  am  afraid,"  I  said,  with  a  sigh,  "that  it 
will  be  a  long  time  before  I  cease  to  offend  you 
with  such  mistakes." 

"There  is  no  occasion  to  say  that,  for  you 
have  not  offended  me,  only  you  make  me  feel 
sorry.     Every  day  when  you  are  with  me  I 


A  CRYSTAL  AGE  253 

try  to  teach  you  something,  to  smooth  the  path 
for  you;  but  you  must  remember,  my  son,  that 
others  cannot  feel  towards  you  as  I  do,  and 
it  may  come  to  pass  that  they  will  sometimes 
be  offended  with  you,  because  their  love  is  less 
than  mine." 

"But  why  do  you  care  so  much  for  me?" 
I  asked,  emboldened  by  her  words.  "Once 
I  thought  that  you  only  of  all  in  the  house 
would  never  love  me:  what  has  changed 
your  feelings  towards  me,  for  I  know  that 
they  have  changed1?"  She  looked  at  me, 
smiling  a  little  sadly,  but  did  not  reply.  "I 
think  I  should  be  happier  for  knowing,"  I 
resumed,  caressing  her  hand.  "Will  you  not 
tell  me?' 

There  was  a  strange  trouble  on  her  face  as 
her  eyes  glanced  away  and  then  returned  to 
mine  again,  while  her  lips  quivered,  as  if  with 
unspoken  words.  Then  she  answered:  "No, 
I  cannot  tell  you  now.  It  would  make  you 
happy,  perhaps,  but  the  proper  time  has  not 
yet  arrived.  You  must  be  patient,  and  learn, 
for  you  have  much  to  learn.  It  is  my  desire 
that  you  should  know  all  those  things  concern- 
ing the  family  of  which  you  are  ignorant,  and 


254  A  CRYSTAL  AGE 

when  I  say  all,  I  mean  not  only  those  suitable 
to  one  in  your  present  condition,  as  a  son  of 
the  house,  but  also  those  higher  matters  which 
belong  to  the  heads  of  the  house — to  the  father 
and  mother." 

Then,  casting  away  all  caution,  I  answered: 
"It  is  precisely  a  knowledge  of  those  greater 
matters  concerning  the  family  which  I  have 
been  hungering  after  ever  since  I  came  into 
the  house." 

"I  know  it,"  she  returned.  "This  hunger 
you  speak  of  was  partly  the  cause  of  your 
fever,  and  it  is  in  you,  keeping  you  feverish 
and  feeble  still;  but  for  this,  instead  of 
being  a  prisoner  here,  you  would  now  be 
abroad,  feeling  the  sun  and  wind  on  your 
face." 

"And  if  you  know  that,"  I  pleaded,  "why 
do  you  not  now  impart  the  knowledge  that  can 
make  me  whole?  For  surely,  all  those  lesser 
matters — those  things  suitable  for  one  in  my 
condition  to  know — can  be  learned  afterwards, 
in  due  time.  For  they  are  not  of  pressing 
importance,  but  the  other  is  to  me  a  matter 
of  life  and  death,  if  you  only  knew  it." 

"I  know  everything,"  she  returned  quickly. 


A  CRYSTAL  AGE  255 

But  a  cloud  had  come  over  her  face  at  my 
concluding  words,  and  a  startled  look  into 
her  eyes.  "Life  and  death!  do  you  know 
what  you  are  saying*?"  she  exclaimed,  fixing 
her  eyes  on  me  with  such  intense  earnestness 
in  them  that  mine  fell  abashed  before  their 
gaze.  Then,  after  a  while,  she  drew  my  head 
down  against  her  knees,  and  spoke  with  a 
strange  tenderness.  "Do  you  then  find  it  so 
hard  to  exercise  a  little  patience,  my  son,  that 
you  do  not  acquiesce  in  what  I  say  to  you,  and 
fear  to  trust  your  future  in  my  hands'?  My 
time  is  short  for  all  that  I  have  to  do,  yet  I 
also  must  be  patient  and  wait,  although  for  me 
it  is  hardest.  For  now  your  coming,  which 
I  did  not  regard  at  first,  seeing  in  you  only 
a  pilgrim  like  others — one  who  through 
accidents  of  travel  had  been  cast  away  and 
left  homeless  in  the  world,  until  we  found 
and  gave  you  shelter — now,  it  has  brought 
something  new  into  my  life:  and  if  this  fresh 
hope,  which  is  only  an  old,  perished  hope  born 
again,  ever  finds  fulfillment,  then  death  will 
lose  much  of  its  bitterness.  But  there  are 
difficulties  in  the  way  which  only  time,  and 
the  energy  of  a  soul  that  centers  all  its  faculties 


256  A  CRYSTAL  AGE 

in  one  desire,   one  enterprise,   can  overcome. 
And  the  chief  difficulty  I  find  is  in  yourself — 
in  that  strange,  untoward  disposition  so  often 
revealed  in  your  conversation,  which  you  have 
shown  even  now;  for  to  be  thus  questioned 
and  pressed,  and  to  have  my  judgment  doubted, 
would  have  greatly  offended  me  in  another. 
Remember  this,  and  do  not  abuse  the  privilege 
you  enjoy:  remember  that  you  must  greatly 
change  before  I  can  share  with  you  the  secrets 
of  my  heart  that  concern  you.     And  bear  in 
mind,  my  son,   that  I  am  not  rebuking  you 
for  a  want  of  knowledge;  for  I  know  that  for 
many   deficiencies  you   are  not  blameworthy. 
I  know,  for  instance,  that  nature  has  denied 
to  you   that  melodious   and  flexible  voice  in 
which  it  is  our  custom  every  day  to  render 
homage  to  the  Father,  to  express  all  the  sacred 
feelings  of  our  hearts,  all  our  love  for  each 
other,  the  joy  we  have  in  life,  and  even  our 
griefs  and  sorrows.     For  grief  is  like  a  dark, 
oppressive  cloud,  until  from  lip  and  hand  it 
breaks  in  the  rain  of  melody,  and  we  are  light- 
ened, so  that  even  the  things  that  are  painful 
give  to  life  a  new  and  chastened  glory.     And 
as  with  music,  so  with  all  other  arts.    There  is 


A  CRYSTAL  AGE  257 

a  twofold  pleasure  in  contemplating  our 
Father's  works :  in  the  first  and  lower  kind  you 
share  with  us;  but  the  second  and  more  noble, 
springing  from  the  first,  is  ours  through  that 
faculty  by  means  of  which  the  beauty  and 
harmony  of  the  visible  world  become  trans- 
muted in  the  soul,  which  is  like  a  pencil  of 
glass  receiving  the  white  sunbeam  into  itself, 
and  changing  it  to  red,  green,  and  violet- 
colored  light:  thus  nature  transmutes  itself 
in  our  minds,  and  is  expressed  in  art.  But  in 
you  this  second  faculty  is  wanting,  else  you 
would  not  willingly  forego  so  great  a  pleasure 
as  its  exercise  affords,  and  love  nature  like 
one  that  loves  his  fellow-man,  but  has  no 
words  to  express  so  sweet  a  feeling.  For 
the  happiness  of  love  with  sympathy,  when 
made  known  and  returned,  is  increased  an 
hundredfold;  and  in  all  artistic  work  we  com- 
mune not  with  blind,  irrational  nature,  but 
with  the  unseen  spirit  which  is  in  nature,  in- 
spiring our  hearts,  returning  love  for  love,  and 
rewarding  our  labor  with  enduring  bliss. 
Therefore  it  is  your  misfortune,  not  your  fault, 
that  you  are  deprived  of  this  supreme  solace 
and  happiness." 


258  A  CRYSTAL  AGE 

To  this  speech,  which  had  a  depressing 
effect  on  me,  I  answered  sadly:  "Every  day 
I  feel  my  deficiencies  more  keenly,  and  wish 
more  ardently  to  lessen  the  great  distance 
between  us;  but  now — sweet  mother,  forgive 
me  for  saying  it! — your  words  almost  make 
me  despond." 

"And  yet,  my  son,  I  have  spoken  only  to 
encourage  you.  I  know  your  limitations,  and 
expect  nothing  beyond  your  powers;  nor  do 
your  errors  greatly  trouble  me,  believing  as 
I  do  that  in  time  you  will  be  able  to  dismiss 
them  from  your  mind.  But  the  temper  of 
your  mind  must  be  changed  to  be  worthy 
of  the  happiness  I  have  designed  for  you. 
Patience  must  chasten  that  reckless  spirit  in 
you;  for  feverish  diligence,  alternating  with 
indifference  or  despondence,  there  must  be  un- 
remitting effort;  and  for  that  unsteady  flame 
of  hope,  which  burns  so  brightly  in  the  morning 
and  in  the  evening  sings  so  low,  there  must 
be  a  bright,  unwavering,  and  rational  hope. 
It  would  be  strange  indeed  if  after  this  you 
were  cast  down;  and,  lest  you  forget  any- 
thing, I  will  say  again  that  only  by  giving 
you    enduring    happiness    and    the    desire    of 


A  CRYSTAL  AGE  259 

your  heart  can  my  one  hope  be  fulfilled. 
Consider  how  much  I  say  to  you  in  these 
words;  it  saddens  me  to  think  that  so  much 
was  necessary.  And  do  not  think  hardly  of 
me,  my  son,  for  wishing  to  keep  you  a  little 
longer  in  this  prison  with  me:  for  in  a  little 
while  your  weakness  will  pass  away  like  a 
morning  cloud.  But  for  me  there  shall  come 
no  change,  since  I  must  remain  day  and  night 
here  with  the  shadow  of  death;  and  when  I 
am  taken  forth,  and  the  sunshine  falls  once 
more  on  my  face,  I  shall  not  feel  it,  and 
shall  not  see  it,  and  I  shall  lie  forgotten  when 
you  are  in  the  midst  of  your  happy  years." 

Her  words  smote  on  my  heart  with  a  keen 
pain  of  compassion.  "Do  not  say  that  you 
will  be  forgotten!"  I  exclaimed  passionately; 
"for  should  you  be  taken  away,  I  shall  still 
love  and  worship  your  memory,  as  I  worship 
you  now  when  you  are  alive." 

She  caressed  my  hand,  but  did  not  speak; 
and  when  I  looked  up,  her  worn  face  had 
dropped  on  the  pillow,  and  her  eyes  were 
closed.  "I  am  tired — tired,"  she  murmured. 
"Stay  with  me  a  little  longer,  but  leave  me 
if  I  sleep." 


260  A  CRYSTAL  AGE 

And  in  a  little  while  she  slept.  The  light 
was  on  her  face,  resting  on  the  purple  pillow, 
and  with  the  soulful  eyes  closed,  and  the  lips 
that  had  no  red  color  of  life  in  them  also 
closed  and  motionless,  it  was  like  a  face  carved 
in  ivory  of  one  who  had  suffered  like  Isarte 
in  the  house  and  perished  long  generations 
ago;  and  the  abundant  dark,  lusterless  hair 
that  framed  it,  looked  dead  too,  and  of  the 
color  of  wrought  iron. 


XVIII 

Chastel's   words  sank  deep  in  my  heart — 

deeper  than  words  had  ever  sunk  before  into 

that  somewhat  unpromising  soil ;  and  although 

she  had  purposely  left  me  in  the  dark  with 

regard    to    many    important   matters,    I    now 

resolved  to  win  her  esteem,  and  bind  her  yet 

more  closely  to  me  by  correcting  those  faults 

in  my  character  she  had  pointed  out  with  so 

much  tenderness. 

Alas!   the  very  next  day  was   destined  to 

bring  me   a   sore   trouble.      On   entering   the 

breakfast-room  I  became  aware  that  a  shadow 

had  fallen  on  the  house.     Among  his  silent 

people  the  father  sat  with  gray,  haggard  face 

and  troubled  eyes;  then  Yoletta  entered,  her 

sweet   face   looking   paler   than   when   I   had 

first  seen  it  after  her  long  punishment,  while 

under  her  heavy,   drooping  eyelids   her   skin 

was  stained  with  that  mournful  purple  which 
261 


262  A  CRYSTAL  AGE 

tells  of  a  long  vigil  and  a  heart  oppressed 
with  anxiety.  I  heard  with  profound  concern 
that  Chastel's  malady  had  suddenly  become 
aggravated;  that  she  had  passed  the  night  in 
the  greatest  suffering.  What  would  become 
of  me,  and  of  all  those  bright  dreams  of 
happiness,  if  she  were  to  die?  was  my  first 
idea.  But  at  the  same  time  I  had  the 
grace  to  feel  ashamed  of  that  selfish  thought. 
Nevertheless,  I  could  not  shake  off  the  gloom 
it  had  produced  in  me,  and,  too  distressed 
in  mind  to  work  or  read,  I  repaired  to  the 
Mother's  Room,  to  be  as  near  as  possible 
to  the  sufferer  on  whose  recovery  so  much 
now  depended.  How  lonely  and  desolate 
it  seemed  there,  now  that  she  was  absent! 
Those  mountain  landscapes,  glowing  with  the 
white  radiance  of  mimic  sunshine,  still  made 
perpetual  summer;  yet  there  seemed  to  be  a 
wintry  chill  and  death-like  atmosphere  which 
struck  to  the  heart,  and  made  me  shiver 
with  cold.  The  day  dragged  slowly  to  its 
close,  and  no  rest  came  to  the  sufferer,  nor 
sign  of  improvement  to  relieve  our  anxiety. 
Until  past  midnight  I  remained  at  my  post, 
then    retired    for    three    or    four    miserable, 


A  CRYSTAL  AGE  263 

anxious  hours,  only  to  return  once  more 
when  it  was  scarcely  light.  Chastel's  condi- 
tion was  still  unchanged,  or,  if  there  had 
been  any  change,  it  was  for  the  worse,  for 
she  had  not  slept.  Again  I  remained,  a 
prey  to  desponding  thoughts,  all  day  in  the 
room;  but  towards  evening  Yoletta  came  to 
take  me  to  her  mother.  The  summons  so 
terrified  me  that  for  some  moments  I  sat 
trembling  and  unable  to  articulate  a  word; 
for  I  could  not  but  think  that  Chastel's  end 
was  approaching.  Yoletta,  however,  divining 
the  cause  of  my  agitation,  explained  that  her 
mother  could  not  sleep  for  torturing  pains  in 
her  head,  and  wished  me  to  place  my  hand 
on  her  forehead,  to  try  whether  that  would 
cause  any  relief.  This  seemed  to  me  a  not 
very  promising  remedy;  but  she  told  me 
that  on  former  occasions  they  had  often 
succeeded  in  procuring  her  ease  by  placing 
a  hand  on  her  forehead,  and  that  having 
failed  now,  Chastel  had  desired  them  to  call 
me  to  her  to  try  my  hand.  I  rose,  and  for 
the  first  time  entered  that  sacred  chamber, 
where  Chastel  was  lying  on  a  low  bed  placed 
on  a  slightly  raised  platform  in  the  center  of 


264  A  CRYSTAL  AGE 

the  floor.  In  the  dim  light  her  face  looked 
white  as  the  pillow  on  which  it  rested,  her 
forehead  contracted  with  sharp  pain,  while 
low  moans  came  at  short  intervals  from  her 
twitching  lips;  but  her  wide-open  eyes  were 
fixed  on  my  face  from  the  moment  I  entered 
the  room,  and  to  me  they  seemed  to  express 
mental  anguish  rather  than  physical  suffering. 
At  the  head  of  the  bed  sat  the  father,  holding 
her  hand  in  his;  but  when  I  entered  he  rose 
and  made  way  for  me,  retiring  to  the  foot 
of  the  bed,  where  two  of  the  women  were 
seated.  I  knelt  beside  the  bed,  and  Yoletta 
raised  and  tenderly  placed  my  right  hand  on 
the  mother's  forehead,  and,  after  whispering 
to  me  to  let  it  rest  very  gently  there,  she 
also  withdrew  a  few  paces. 

Chastel  did  not  speak,  but  for  some  minutes 
continued  her  low,  piteous  moanings,  only 
her  eyes  remained  fixed  on  my  face;  and  at 
last,  becoming  uneasy  at  her  scrutiny,  I  said 
in  a  whisper:  "Dearest  mother,  do  you  wish 
to  say  anything  to  me?" 

"Yes,  come  nearer,"  she  replied;  and  when 
I  had  bent  my  cheek  close  to  her  face,  she 
continued:     "Do  not  fear,  my  son;  I  shall  not 


A  CRYSTAL  AGE  265 

die.  I  cannot  die  until  that  of  which  I  have 
spoken  to  you  has  been  accomplished." 

I  rejoiced  at  her  words,  yet,  at  the  same 
time,  they  gave  me  pain;  for  it  seemed  as 
though  she  knew  how  much  my  heart  had 
been  troubled  by  that  ignoble  fear. 

"Dear  mother,  may  I  say  something1?"  I 
asked,  wishing  to  tell  her  of  my  resolutions. 

"Not  now;  I  know  what  you  wish  to  say," 
she  returned.  "Be  patient  and  hopeful  always, 
and  fear  nothing,  even  though  we  should  be 
long  divided;  for  it  will  be  many  days  before 
I  can  leave  this  room  to  speak  with  you 
again." 

So  softly  had  she  whispered,  that  the  others 
who  stood  so  near  were  not  aware  that  she 
had  spoken  at  all. 

After  this  brief  colloquy  she  closed  her  eyes, 
but  for  some  time  the  low  moans  of  pain 
continued.  Gradually  they  sank  lower,  and 
became  less  and  less  frequent,  while  the  lines 
of  pain  faded  out  of  her  white,  death-like 
face.  And  at  length  Yoletta,  stealing  softly 
to  my  side,  whispered,  "She  is  sleeping,"  and 
withdrawing  my  hand,  led  me  away. 

When  we  were  again  in  the  Mother's  Room 


266  A  CRYSTAL  AGE 

she  threw  her  arms  about  my  neck  and  burst 
into  a  tempest  of  tears. 

"Dearest  Yoletta,  be  comforted,"  I  said, 
pressing  her  to  my  breast;  "she  will  not  die." 

"Oh,  Smith,  how  do  you  know*?"  she 
returned  quickly,  looking  up  with  her  eyes 
still  shining  with  large  drops. 

Then,  of  Chastel's  whispered  words  to  me, 
I  repeated  those  four,  "I  shall  not  die," 
but  nothing  more;  they  were,  however,  a 
great  relief  to  her,  and  her  sweet,  sorrowful 
face  brightened  like  a  drooping  flower  after 
rain. 

"Ah,  she  knew,  then,  that  the  touch  of 
your  hand  would  cause  sleep,  that  sleep  would 
save  her,"  she  said,  smiling  up  at  me. 

"And  you,  my  darling,  how  long  is  it 
since  you  closed  those  sweet  eyelids  that 
seem  so  heavy1?" 

"Not  since  I  slept  three  nights  ago." 

"Will  you  sit  by  me  here,  resting  your 
head  on  me,  and  sleep  a  little  now?" 

"Not  there!"  she  cried  quickly.  "Not 
on  the  mother's  couch.  But  if  you  will  sit 
here,  it  will  be  pleasant  if  I  can  sleep  for  a 
little  while,  resting  on  you." 


A  CRYSTAL  AGE  267 

I  placed  myself  on  the  low  seat  she  led 
me  to,  and  then,  when  she  had  coiled  herself 
up  on  the  cushions,  with  her  arms  still  round 
my  neck,  and  her  head  resting  on  my  bosom, 
she  breathed  a  long  happy  sigh,  and  dropped 
like  a  tired  child  to  sleep. 

How  perfect  my  happiness  would  have 
been  then,  with  Yoletta  in  my  arms,  clasping 
her  weary  little  ministering  hands  in  mine, 
and  tenderly  kissing  her  dark,  shining  hair, 
but  for  the  fear  that  some  person  might  come 
there  to  notice  and  disturb  me.  And  pretty 
soon  I  was  startled  to  see  the  father  himself 
coming  from  Chastel's  chamber  to  us.  Catch- 
ing sight  of  me  he  paused,  smiling,  then 
advanced,  and  deliberately  sat  down  by  my 
side. 

"This  one  is  sleeping  also,"  he  said  cheer- 
fully, touching  the  girl's  hair  with  his  hand. 
"But  you  need  not  fear,  Smith;  I  think  we 
shall  be  able  to  talk  very  well  without  waking 
her." 

I  had  feared  something  quite  different,  if 
he  had  only  known  it,  and  felt  considerably 
relieved  by  his  words;  nevertheless,  I  was  not 
over-pleased  at  the  prospect  of  a  conversation 


268  A  CRYSTAL  AGE 

just   then,   and   should   have  preferred  being 
left  alone  with  my  precious  burden. 

"My  son,"  he  continued,  placing  a  hand 
on  my  shoulder,  "I  sometimes  recall,  not 
without  a  smile,  the  effect  your  first  appear- 
ance produced  on  us,  when  we  were  startled 
at  your  somewhat  grotesque  pilgrim  costume. 
Your  attempts  at  singing,  and  ignorance  of 
art  generally,  also  impressed  me  unfavorably, 
and  gave  me  some  concern  when  I  thought 
about  the  future — that  is,  your  future;  for  it 
seemed  to  me  that  you  had  but  slender 
foundations  whereon  to  build  a  happy  life. 
These  doubts,  however,  no  longer  trouble 
me;  for  on  several  occasions  you  have  shown 
us  that  you  possess  abundantly  that  richest 
of  all  gifts  and  safest  guide  to  happiness — 
the  capacity  for  deep  affection.  To  this 
spirit  of  love  in  you — this  summer  of  the 
heart  which  causes  it  to  blossom  with  beautiful 
thoughts  and  deeds — I  attribute  your  success 
just  now,  when  the  contact  of  your  hand 
produced  the  long-desired,  refreshing  slumber 
so  necessary  to  the  mother  at  this  stage  of 
her  malady.  I  know  that  this  is  a  mysterious 
thing;  and  it  is  commonly  said  that  in  such 


A  CRYSTAL  AGE  269 

cases  relief  is  caused  by  an  emanation  from 
the  brain  through  the  fingers.  Doubtless 
this  is  so;  and  I  also  choose  to  believe  that 
only  a  powerful  spirit  of  love  in  the  heart 
can  rightly  direct  this  subtle  energy,  that 
where  such  a  spirit  is  absent  the  desired 
effect  cannot  be  produced." 

"I  do  not  know,"  I  replied.  "Great  as 
my  love  and  devotion  is,  I  cannot  suppose 
it  to  equal,  much  less  to  surpass,  that  of 
others  who  yet  failed  on  this  occasion  to 
give  relief." 

"Yes,  yes;  only  that  is  looking  merely 
at  the  surface  of  the  matter,  and  leaving  out 
of  sight  the  unfathomable  mysteries  of  a  being 
compounded  of  flesh  and  spirit.  There  are 
among  our  best  instruments  peculiar  to  this 
house,  especially  those  used  chiefly  in  our 
harvest  music,  some  of  such  finely-tempered 
materials,  and  of  so  delicate  a  construction, 
that  the  person  wishing  to  perform  on  them 
must  not  only  be  inspired  with  the  melodious 
passion,  but  the  entire  system — body  and 
soul — must  be  in  the  proper  mood,  the  flesh 
itself  elevated  into  harmony  with  the  exalted 
spirit,  else  he  will  fail  to  elicit  the  tones  or 


270  A  CRYSTAL  AGE 

to  give  the  expression  desired.  This  is  a 
rough  and  a  poor  simile,  when  we  consider 
how  wonderful  an  instrument  a  human  being 
is,  with  the  body  that  burns  with  thought, 
and  the  spirit  that  quivers  and  cries  with 
pain,  and  when  we  think  how  its  innumerable, 
complex  chords  may  be  injured  and  untuned 
by  suffering.  The  will  may  be  ours,  but 
something,  we  know  not  what,  interposes  to 
defeat  our  best  efforts.  That  you  have 
succeeded  in  producing  so  blessed  a  result, 
after  we  had  failed,  has  served  to  deepen 
and  widen  in  our  hearts  the  love  we  already 
felt  for  you;  for  how  much  more  precious 
is  this  melody  of  repose,  this  sweet  interval 
of  relief  from  cruel  pain  the  mother  now 
experiences,  than  many  melodies  from  clear 
voices  and  trained  hands." 

In  my  secret  heart  I  believed  that  he  was 
taking  much  too  lofty  a  view  of  the  matter; 
but  I  had  no  desire  to  argue  against  so 
flattering  a  delusion,  if  it  were  one,  and  only 
wished  that  I  could  share  it  with  him. 

"She  is  sleeping  still,"  he  said  presently, 
"perhaps  without  pain,  like  Yoletta  here,  and 
her  sleep  will  now  probably  last  for  some  hours." 


A  CRYSTAL  AGE  271 

"I  pray  Heaven  that  she  may  wake 
refreshed  and  free  from  pain,"  I  remarked. 

He  seemed  surprised  at  my  words,  and 
looked  searchingly  into  my  face.  "My  son," 
he  said,  "it  grieves  me,  at  a  moment  like 
the  present,  to  have  to  point  out  a  great 
error  to  you;  but  it  is  an  error  hurtful  to 
yourself  and  painful  to  those  who  see  it,  and 
if  I  were  to  pass  it  over  in  silence,  or  put 
off  speaking  of  it  to  another  time,  I  should 
not  be  fulfilling  the  part  of  a  loving  father 
towards  you." 

Surprised  at  this  speech,  I  begged  him  to 
tell  me  what  I  had  said  that  was  wrong. 

"Do  you  not  then  know  that  it  it  un- 
lawful to  entertain  such  a  thought  as  you 
have  expressed*?"  he  said.  "In  moments  of 
supreme  pain  or  bitterness  or  peril  we  some- 
times so  far  forget  ourselves  as  to  cry  out 
to  Heaven  to  save  us  or  to  give  us  ease; 
but  to  make  any  such  petition  when  we  are 
in  the  full  possession  of  our  faculties  is  un- 
worthy of  a  reasonable  being,  and  an  offense 
to  the  Father:  for  we  pray  to  each  other, 
and  are  moved  by  such  prayers,  remembering 
that  we  are  fallible,  and  often  err  through  haste 


272  A  CRYSTAL  AGE 

and  forgetfulness  and  imperfect  knowledge. 
But  he  who  freely  gave  us  life  and  reason 
and  all  good  gifts,  needs  not  that  we  should 
remind  him  of  anything;  therefore  to  ask  him 
to  give  us  the  thing  we  desire  is  to  make  him 
like  ourselves,  and  charge  him  with  an  over- 
sight; or  worse,  we  attribute  weakness  and 
irresolution  to  him,  since  the  petitioner  thinks 
by  importunity  to  incline  the  balance  in  his 
favor." 

I  was  about  to  reply  that  I  had  always 
considered  prayer  to  be  an  essential  part  of 
religion,  and  not  of  my  form  of  religion  only, 
but  of  all  religions  all  over  the  world.  Luckily 
I  remembered  in  time  that  he  probably  knew 
more  about  matters  "all  over  the  world"  than 
I  did,  and  so  held  my  tongue. 

"Have  you  any  doubts  on  the  subject*?" 
he  asked,  after  a  while. 

"I  must  confess  that  I  still  have  some 
doubts,"  I  replied.  "I  believe  that  our 
Creator  and  Father  desires  the  happiness  of 
all  his  creatures  and  takes  no  pleasure  in 
seeing  us  miserable;  for  it  would  be  im- 
possible not  to  believe  it,  seeing  how  greatly 
happiness  overbalances  misery  in  the  world. 


A  CRYSTAL  AGE  273 

But  he  does  not  come  to  us  in  visible  form 
to  tell  us  in  an  audible  voice  that  to  cry  out 
to  him  in  sore  pain  and  distress  is  unlawful. 
How,  then,  do  we  know  this  thing?  For  a 
child  cries  to  its  mother,  and  a  fledgling  in 
the  nest  to  its  parent  bird;  and  he  is  infinitely 
more  to  us  than  parent  to  child — infinitely 
stronger  to  help,  and  knows  our  griefs  as  no 
fellow-mortal  can  know  them.  May  we  not, 
then,  believe,  without  hurt  to  our  souls,  that 
the  cry  of  one  of  his  children  in  affliction 
may  reach  him;  that  in  his  compassion,  and 
by  means  of  his  sovereign  power  over  nature, 
he  may  give  ease  to  the  racked  body,  and 
peace  and  joy  to  the  desolate  mind?" 

"You  ask  me,  How,  then,  do  we  know  this 
thing?  and  you  answer  the  question  yourself, 
yet  fail  to  perceive  that  you  answer  it,  when 
you  say  that  although  he  does  not  come  in 
a  visible  form  to  teach  us  this  thing  and  that 
thing,  yet  we  know  that  he  desires  our  happi- 
ness; and  to  this  you  might  have  added  a 
thousand  or  ten  thousand  other  things  which 
we  know.  If  the  reason  he  gave  us  to  start 
with  makes  it  unnecessary  that  he  should 
come  to  tell  us  in  an  audible  voice  that  he 


274  A  CRYSTAL  AGE 

desires  our  happiness,  it  must  also  surely 
suffice  to  tell  us  which  are  lawful  and  which 
unlawful  of  all  the  thoughts  continually  rising 
in  our  hearts.  That  any  one  should  question 
so  evident  and  universally  accepted  a  truth, 
the  foundation  of  all  religion,  seems  very 
surprising  to  me.  If  it  had  consisted  with 
his  plan  to  make  these  delicate  mortal  bodies 
capable  of  every  agreeable  sensation  in  the 
highest  degree,  yet  not  liable  to  accident,  and 
not  subject  to  misery  and  pain,  he  would 
surely  have  done  this  for  all  of  us.  But 
reason  and  nature  show  us  that  such  an  end 
did  not  consist  with  his  plan;  therefore  to 
ask  him  to  suspend  the  operations  of  nature 
for  the  benefit  of  any  individual  sufferer, 
however  poignant  and  unmerited  the  suffer- 
ings may  be,  is  to  shut  our  eyes  to  the  only 
light  he  has  given  us.  All  our  highest  and 
sweetest  feelings  unite  with  reason  to  tell  us 
with  one  voice  that  he  loves  us;  and  our 
knowledge  of  nature  shows  us  plainly  enough 
that  he  also  loves  all  the  creatures  inferior 
to  man.  To  us  he  has  given  reason  for  a 
guide,  and  for  the  guidance  and  protection 
of  the  lower  kinds  he  has  given  instinct:  and 


A  CRYSTAL  AGE  275 

though  they  do  not  know  him,  it  would  make 
us  doubt  his  impartial  love  for  all  his  creatures, 
if  we,  by  making  use  of  our  reason,  higher 
knowledge,  and  articulate  speech,  were  able 
to  call  down  benefits  on  ourselves,  and  avert 
pain  and  disaster,  while  the  dumb,  irrational 
brutes  suffered  in  silence — the  languishing 
deer  that  leaves  the  herd  with  a  festering 
thorn  in  its  foot;  the  passage  bird  blown 
from  its  course  to  perish  miserably  far  out  at 
sea." 

His  conclusions  were  perhaps  more  logical 
than  mine;  nevertheless,  although  I  could 
not  argue  the  matter  any  more  with  him,  I 
was  not  yet  prepared  to  abandon  this  last 
cherished  shred  of  old  beliefs,  although 
perhaps  not  cherished  for  its  intrinsic  worth, 
but  rather  because  it  had  been  given  to  me 
by  a  sweet  woman  whose  memory  was  sacred 
to  my  heart — my  mother  before  Chastel. 

Fortunately,  it  was  not  necessary  to  con- 
tinue the  discussion  any  longer,  for  at  this 
juncture  one  of  the  watchers  from  the  sick- 
room came  to  report  that  the  mother  was 
still  sleeping  peacefully,  hearing  which,  the 
father  rose   to  seek  a  little  needful   rest  in 


276  A  CRYSTAL  AGE 

an  adjoining  room.  Before  going,  however, 
he  proposed,  with  mistaken  kindness,  to 
relieve  me  of  my  burden,  and  place  the  girl 
without  waking  her  on  a  couch.  But  I 
would  not  consent  to  have  her  disturbed; 
and  finally,  to  my  great  delight,  they  left  her 
still  in  my  arms,  the  father  warmly  pressing 
my  hand,  and  advising  me  to  reflect  well  on 
his  words  concerning  prayer. 

It  was  growing  dark  now,  and  how  welcome 
that  obscurity  seemed,  while  with  no  one 
nigh  to  see  or  hear  I  kissed  her  soft  tresses 
a  hundred  times,  and  murmured  a  hundred 
endearing  words  in  her  sleeping  ears. 

Her  waking,  which  gave  me  a  pang  at 
first,  afforded  me  in  the  end  a  still  greater 
bliss. 

"Oh,  how  dark  it  is — where  am  Is?"  she 
exclaimed,  starting  suddenly  from  repose. 

"With  me,  sweetest,"  I  said.  "Do  you 
not  remember  going  to  sleep  on  my  breast?" 

"Yes;  but  oh,  why  did  you  not  wake  me 
sooner?    My  mother — my  mother " 

"She  is  still  quietly  sleeping,  dearest.  Ah, 
I  wish  you  also  had  continued  sleeping!  It 
was  such  a  delight  to  have  you  in  my  arms." 


A  CRYSTAL  AGE  277 

"My  love!"  she  said,  laying  her  soft  cheek 
against  mine.  "How  sweet  it  was  to  fall 
asleep  in  your  arms!  When  we  came  in 
here  I  could  scarcely  say  a  word,  for  my 
heart  was  too  full  for  speech;  and  now  I 
have  a  hundred  things  to  say.  After  all,  I 
should  only  finish  by  giving  you  a  kiss, 
which  is  more  eloquent  than  speech;  so  I 
shall  kiss  you  at  once,  and  save  myself  the 
trouble  of  talking  so  much." 

"Say  one  of  the  hundred  things,  Yoletta." 

"Oh,  Smith,  before  this  evening  I  did  not 
think  that  I  could  love  you  more;  and  some- 
times, when  I  recalled  what  I  once  said  to 
you — on  the  hill,  do  you  remember? — it 
seemed  to  me  that  I  already  loved  you  a 
little  too  much.  But  now  I  am  convinced 
that  I  was  mistaken,  for  a  thousand  offenses 
could  not  alienate  my  heart,  which  is  all 
yours  forever." 

"Mine  for  ever,  without  a  doubt,  darling'?" 
I  murmured,  holding  her  against  my  breast; 
and  in  my  rapture  almost  forgetting  that  this 
angelic  affection  she  lavished  on  me  would 
not  long  satisfy  my  heart. 

"Yes,  for  ever,  for  you  shall  never,  never 


278  A  CRYSTAL  AGE 

leave  the  house.  Your  pilgrimage,  from  which 
you  derived  so  little  benefit,  is  over  now. 
And  if  you  ever  attempt  to  go  forth  again 
to  find  out  new  wonders  in  the  world,  I 
shall  clasp  you  round  with  my  arms,  as  I 
do  now,  and  keep  you  prisoner  against  your 
will;  and  if  you  say  'Farewell'  a  hundred 
times  to  me,  I  shall  blot  out  that  sad  word 
every  time  with  my  lips,  and  put  a  better 
one  in  its  place,  until  my  word  conquers 
yours." 


XIX 

Although  deprived  for  the  present  of  all 
intercourse  with  Chastel  and  Yoletta,  now  in 
constant  attendance  on  her  mother,  I  ought 
to  have  been  happy,  for  all  things  seemed 
conspiring  to  make  my  life  precious  to  me. 
Nevertheless,  I  was  far  from  happy;  and, 
having  heard  so  much  said  about  reason  in 
my  late  conversations  with  the  father  and 
mother  of  the  house,  I  began  to  pay  an 
unusual  amount  of  attention  to  this  faculty 
in  me,  in  order  to  discover  by  its  aid  the 
secret  of  the  sadness  which  continued  at  all 
times  during  this  period  to  oppress  my  heart. 
I  only  discovered,  what  others  have  discovered 
before  me,  that  the  practice  of  introspection 
has  a  corrosive  effect  on  the  mind,  which 
only  serves  to  aggravate  the  malady  it  is 
intended  to  cure.  During  those  restful  days 
in  the  Mother's  Room,  when  I  had  sat  with 
279 


280  A  CRYSTAL  AGE 

Chastel,  this  spirit  of  melancholy  had  been 
with  me;  but  the  mother's  hallowing  presence 
had  given  something  of  a  divine  color  to 
it,  my  passions  had  slumbered,  and,  except 
at  rare  intervals,  I  had  thought  of  sorrow  as 
of  something  at  an  immeasurable  distance 
from  me.    Then  to  my  spirit 

"The  gushing  of  the  wave 
Far,  far  away,  did  seem  to  mourn  and  rave 
On  alien  shores" ; 

and  so  sweet  had  seemed  that  pause,  that 
I  had  hoped  and  prayed  for  its  continuance. 
No  sooner  was  I  separated  from  her  than 
the  charm  dissolved,  and  all  my  thoughts, 
like  evening  clouds  that  appear  luminous  and 
rich  in  color  until  the  sun  has  set,  began 
to  be  darkened  with  a  mysterious  gloom. 
Strive  how  I  might,  I  was  unable  to  compose 
my  mind  to  that  serene,  trustful  temper  she 
had  desired  to  see  in  me,  and  without  which 
there  could  be  no  blissful  futurity.  After  all 
the  admonitions  and  the  comforting  assurances 
I  had  received,  and  in  spite  of  reason  and 
all  it  could  say  to  me,  each  night  I  went 
to  my  bed  with   a  heavy  heart;   and   each 


A  CRYSTAL  AGE  281 

morning  when  I  woke,  there,  by  my  pillow, 
waited  that  sad  phantom,  to  go  with  me 
where  I  went,  to  remind  me  at  every  pause 
of  an  implacable  Fate,  who  held  my  future 
in  its  hands,  who  was  mightier  than  Chastel, 
and  would  shatter  all  her  schemes  for  my 
happiness  like  vessels  of  brittle  glass. 

Several  days — probably  about  fifteen,  for 
I  did  not  count  them — had  passed  since  I 
had  been  admitted  into  the  mother's  sleeping- 
room,  when  there  came  an  exceedingly  lovely 
day,  which  seemed  to  bring  to  me  a  pleasant 
sensation  of  returning  health,  and  made  me 
long  to  escape  from  morbid  dreams  and  vain 
cravings.  Why  should  I  sit  at  home  and 
mope,  I  thought;  it  was  better  to  be 
active:  sun  and  wind  were  full  of  healing. 
Such  a  day  was  in  truth  one  of  those  captain 
jewels  "that  seldom  placed  are"  among  the 
blusterous  days  of  late  autumn,  with  winter 
already  present  to  speed  its  parting.  For 
a  long  time  the  sky  had  been  overcast  with 
multitudes  and  endless  hurrying  processions 
of  wild-looking  clouds — torn,  wind-chased 
fugitives,  of  every  mournful  shade  of  color, 
from  palest  gray  to  slatey-black;  and  storms 


282  A  CRYSTAL  AGE 

of  rain  had  been  frequent,  impetuous,  and 
suddenly  intermitted,  or  passing  away  phan- 
tom-like towards  the  misty  hills,  there  to  lose 
themselves  among  other  phantoms,  ever 
wandering  sorrowfully  in  that  vast,  shadowy 
borderland  where  earth  and  heaven  mingled; 
and  gusts  of  wind  which,  as  they  roared  by 
over  a  thousand  straining  trees  and  passed 
off  with  hoarse,  volleying  sounds,  seemed  to 
mimic  the  echoing  thunder.  And  the  leaves 
— the  millions  and  myriads  of  sere,  cast-off 
leaves,  heaped  ankle-deep  under  the  desolate 
giants  of  the  wood,  and  everywhere,  in  the 
hollows  of  the  earth,  lying  silent  and  motion- 
less, as  became  dead,  fallen  things — suddenly 
catching  a  mock  fantastic  life  from  the  wind, 
how  they  would  all  be  up  and  stirring,  every 
leaf  with  a  hiss  like  a  viper,  racing,  many 
thousands  at  a  time,  over  the  barren  spaces, 
all  hurriedly  talking  together  in  their  dead- 
leaf  language!  until,  smitten  with  a  mightier 
gust,  they  would  rise  in  flight  on  flight,  in 
storms  and  stupendous,  eddying  columns, 
whirled  up  to  the  clouds,  to  fall  to  the  earth 
again  in  showers,  and  freckle  the  grass  for 
roods  around.     Then  for  a  moment,   far  off 


A  CRYSTAL  AGE  283 

in  the  heavens,  there  would  be  a  rift,  or  a 
thinning  of  the  clouds,  and  the  sunbeams, 
striking  like  lightning  through  their  ranks, 
would  illumine  the  pale  blue  mist,  the  slant- 
ing rain,  the  gaunt  black  boles  and  branches, 
glittering  with  wet,  casting  a  momentary  glory 
over  the  ocean-like  tumult  of  nature. 

In  the  condition  I  was  in,  with  a  relaxed 
body  and  dejected  mind,  this  tempestuous 
period,  which  would  have  only  afforded  fresh 
delight  to  a  person  in  perfect  health,  had  no 
charm  for  my  spirit;  but,  on  the  contrary, 
it  only  served  to  intensify  my  gloom. 
And  yet  day  after  day  it  drew  me  forth, 
although  in  my  weakness  I  shivered  in  the 
rough  gale,  and  shrank  from  the  touch 
of  the  big  cold  drops  the  clouds  flung  down 
on  me.  It  fascinated  me,  like  the  sight  of 
armies  contending  in  battle,  or  of  some  tragic 
action  from  which  the  spectator  cannot  with- 
draw his  gaze.  For  I  had  become  infected 
with  strange  fancies,  so  persistent  and  somber 
that  they  were  like  superstitions.  It  seemed 
to  me  that  not  I  but  nature  had  changed, 
that  the  familiar  light  had  passed  like  a  kindly 
expression  from  her  countenance,  which  was 


284  A  CRYSTAL  AGE 

now  charged  with  an  awful  menacing  gloom 
that  frightened  my  soul.  Sometimes,  when 
straying  alone,  like  an  unquiet  ghost  among 
the  leafless  trees,  when  a  deeper  shadow 
swept  over  the-  earth,  I  would  pause,  pale 
with  apprehension,  listening  to  the  many 
dirge-like  sounds  of  the  forest,  ever  prophesy- 
ing evil,  until  in  my  trepidation  I  would 
start  and  tremble,  and  look  to  this  side  and 
to  that,  as  if  considering  which  way  to  fly 
from  some  unimaginable  calamity  coming, 
I  knew  not  from  where,  to  wreck  my  life 
for  ever. 

This  bright  day  was  better  suited  to  my 
complaint.  The  sun  shone  as  in  spring;  not  a 
stain  appeared  on  the  crystal  vault  of  heaven; 
everywhere  the  unfailing  grass  gave  rest  to 
the  eye  with  its  verdure;  and  a  light  wind 
blew  fresh  and  bracing  in  my  face,  making 
my  pulses  beat  faster,  although  feebly  still. 
Remembering  my  happy  wood-cutting  days, 
before  my  trouble  had  come  to  me,  I  got 
my  ax  and  started  to  walk  to  the  wood; 
then  seeing  Yoletta  watching  my  departure 
from  the  terrace,  I  waved  my  hand  to  her. 
Before  I  had   gone   far,   however,   she  came 


A  CRYSTAL  AGE  285 

running  to  me,  full  of  anxiety,  to  warn  me 
that  I  was  not  yet  strong  enough  for  such 
work.  I  assured  her  that  I  had  no  intention 
of  working  hard  and  tiring  myself,  then 
continued  my  walk,  while  she  returned  to 
attend  on  her  mother. 

The  day  was  so  bright  with  sunshine  that 
it  inspired  me  with  a  kind  of  passing  glad- 
ness, and  I  began  to  hum  snatches  of  old 
half-remembered  songs.  They  were  songs 
of  departing  summer,  tinged  with  melancholy, 
and  suggested  other  verses  not  meant  for 
singing,  which  I  began  repeating. 

"Rich  flowers  have  perished  on  the  silent  earth — 
Blossoms  of  valley  and  of  wood  that  gave 
A  fragrance  to  the  winds." 

And  again: 

"The  blithesome  birds  have  sought  a  sunnier  shore; 
They  lingered  till  the  cold  cold  winds  went  in 
And  withered  their  green  homes." 

And  these  also  were  fragments,  breathing  only 
of  sadness,  which  made  me  resolve  to  dismiss 
poetry  from  my  mind  and  think  of  nothing 
at  all.  I  tried  to  interest  myself  in  a  flight 
of  buzzard-like  hawks,  soaring  in  wide  circles 


286  A  CRYSTAL  AGE 

at  an  immense  height  above  me.  Gazing  up 
into  that  far  blue  vault,  under  which  they 
moved  so  serenely,  and  which  seemed  so 
infinite,  I  remembered  how  often  in  former 
days,  when  gazing  up  into  such  a  sky,  I  had 
breathed  a  prayer  to  the  Unseen  Spirit;  but 
now  I  recalled  the  words  the  father  of  the 
house  had  spoken  to  me,  and  the  prayer 
died  unformed  in  my  heart,  and  a  strange 
feeling  of  orphanhood  saddened  me,  and 
brought  my  eyes  to  earth  again. 

Half-way  to  the  wood,  on  an  open  reach 
where  there  were  no  trees  or  bushes,  I  came 
on  a  great  company  of  storks,  half  a  thousand 
of  them  at  least,  apparently  resting  on  their 
travels,  for  they  were  all  standing  motionless, 
with  necks  drawn  in,  as  if  dozing.  They 
were  very  stately,  handsome  birds,  clear  gray 
in  color,  with  a  black  collar  on  the  neck, 
and  red  beak  and  legs.  My  approach  did 
not  disturb  them  until  I  was  within  twenty 
yards  of  the  nearest — for  they  were  scattered 
over  an  acre  of  ground;  then  they  rose  with 
a  loud,  rustling  noise  of  wings,  only  to  settle 
again  at  a  short  distance  off. 

Incredible  numbers  of  birds,  chiefly  water- 


A  CRYSTAL  AGE  287 

fowl,  had  appeared  in  the  neighborhood 
since  the  beginning  of  the  wet,  boisterous 
weather;  the  river  too  was  filled  with  these 
new  visitors,  and  I  was  told  that  most  of 
them  were  passengers  driven  from  distant 
northern  regions,  which  they  made  their 
summer  home,  and  were  now  flying  south 
in  search  of  a  warmer  climate. 

All  this  movement  in  the  feathered  world 
had,  during  my  troubled  days,  brought  me 
as  little  pleasure  as  the  other  changes  going 
on  about  me:  those  winged  armies  ever 
hurrying  by  in  broken  detachments,  wailing 
and  clanging  by  day  and  by  night  in  the 
clouds,  white  with  their  own  terror,  or  black- 
plumed  like  messengers  of  doom,  to  my  dis- 
tempered fancy  only  added  a  fresh  element 
of  fear  to  a  nature  racked  with  disorders,  and 
full  of  tremendous  signs  and  omens. 

The  interest  with  which  I  now  remarked 
these  pilgrim  storks  seemed  to  me  a  pleasant 
symptom  of  a  return  to  a  saner  state  of  mind, 
and  before  continuing  my  walk  I  wished  that 
Yoletta  had  been  there  with  me  to  see  them 
and  tell  me  their  history;  for  she  was  curious 
about  such  matters,  and  had  a  most  wonderful 


288  A  CRYSTAL  AGE 

affection  for  the  whole  feathered  race.  She 
had  her  favorites  among  the  birds  at  different 
seasons,  and  the  kind  she  most  esteemed  now- 
had  been  arriving  for  over  a  •month,  their 
numbers  increasing  day  by  day  until  the 
woods  and  fields  were  alive  with  their  flocks. 
This  kind  was  named  the  cloud-bird,  on 
account  of  its  starling-like  habit  of  wheel- 
ing about  over  its  feeding-ground,  the  birds 
throwing  themselves  into  masses,  then  scatter- 
ing and  gathering  again  many  times,  so  that 
when  viewed  at  a  distance  a  large  flock  had 
the  appearance  of  a  cloud,  growing  dark  and 
thin  alternately,  and  continually  changing  its 
form.  It  was  somewhat  larger  than  a  starling, 
with  a  freer  flight,  and  had  a  richer  plumage, 
its  color  being  deep  glossy  blue,  or  blue- 
black,  and  underneath  bright  chestnut.  When 
close  at  hand  and  in  the  bright  sunshine,  the 
aerial  gambols  of  a  flock  were  beautiful  to 
witness,  as  the  birds  wheeled  about  and  dis- 
played in  turn,  as  if  moved  by  one  impulse, 
first  the  rich  blue,  then  the  bright  chestnut 
surfaces  to  the  eye.  The  charming  effect 
was  increased  by  the  bell-like,  chirping  notes 
they  all  uttered  together,  and  as  they  swept 


A  CRYSTAL  AGE  289 

round  or  doubled  in  the  air  at  intervals 
came  these  tempests  of  melodious  sound — a 
most  perfect  expression  of  wild  jubilant  bird- 
life.  Yoletta,  discoursing  in  the  most  delight- 
ful way  about  her  loved  cloud-birds,  had  told 
me  that  they  spent  the  summer  season  in  great 
solitary  marshes,  where  they  built  their  nests 
in  the  rushes;  but  with  cold  weather  they 
flew  abroad,  and  at  such  times  seemed  always 
to  prefer  the  neighborhood  of  man,  remain- 
ing in  great  flocks  near  the  house  until  the 
next  spring.  On  this  bright  sunny  morning 
I  was  amazed  at  the  multitudes  I  saw  during 
my  walk:  yet  it  was  not  strange  that  birds 
were  so  abundant,  considering  that  there  were 
no  longer  any  savages  on  the  earth,  with 
nothing  to  amuse  their  vacant  minds  except 
killing  the  feathered  creatures  with  their  bows 
and  arrows,  and  no  innumerable  company  of 
squaws  clamorous  for  trophies — unchristian 
women  of  the  woods  with  painted  faces, 
insolence  in  their  eyes,  and  for  ornaments 
the  feathered  skins  torn  from  slain  birds  on 
their  heads. 

When  I  at  length  arrived  at  the  wood,  I 


2Q0  A  CRYSTAL  AGE 

went  to  that  spot  where  I  had  felled  the 
large  tree  on  the  occasion  of  my  last  and 
disastrous  visit,  and  where  Yoletta,  newly 
released  from  confinement,  had  found  me. 
There  lay  the  rough-barked  giant  exactly 
as  I  had  left  it,  and  once  more  I  began  to 
hack  at  the  large  branches;  but  my  feeble 
strokes  seemed  to  make  little  impression,  and 
becoming  tired  in  a  very  short  time,  I  con- 
cluded that  I  was  not  yet  equal  to  such  work, 
and  sat  myself  down  to  rest.  I  remembered 
how,  when  sitting  on  that  very  spot,  I  had 
heard  a  slight  rustling  of  the  withered  leaves, 
and  looking  up  beheld  Yoletta  coming  swiftly 
towards  me  with  outstretched  arms,  and  her 
face  shining  with  joy.  Perhaps  she  would 
come  again  to  me  to-day:  yes,  she  would 
surely  come  when  I  wished  for  her  so  much; 
for  she  had  followed  me  out  to  try  to  dis- 
suade me  from  going  to  the  woods,  and 
would  be  anxiously  thinking  about  me;  and 
she  could  spare  an  hour  from  the  sick-room 
now.  The  trees  and  bushes  would  prevent 
me  from  seeing  her  approach,  but  I  should  hear 
her,  as  I  had  heard  her  before.  I  sat  motion- 
less,   scarcely    breathing,    straining   my    sense 


A  CRYSTAL  AGE  291 

to  catch  the  first  faint  sound  of  her  light, 
swift  step;  and  every  time  a  small  bird, 
hopping  along  the  ground,  rustled  a  withered 
leaf,  I  started  up  to  greet  and  embrace  her. 
But  she  did  not  come;  and  at  last,  sick  at 
heart  with  hope  deferred,  I  covered  my  face 
with  my  hands,  and,  weak  with  misery,  cried 
like  a  disappointed  child. 

Presently  something  touched  me,  and, 
removing  my  hands  from  my  face,  I  saw  that 
great  silver-gray  dog  which  had  come  to 
Yoletta's  call  when  I  fainted,  sitting  before 
me  with  his  chin  resting  on  my  knees.  No 
doubt  he  remembered  that  last  wood-cutting 
day  very  well,  and  had  come  to  take  care 
of  me  now. 

"Welcome,  dear  old  friend !"  said  I;  and 
in  my  craving  for  sympathy  of  some  kind  I 
put  my  arms  over  him,  and  pressed  my  face 
against  his.  Then  I  sat  up  again,  and 
gazed  into  the  pair  of  clear  brown  eyes 
watching  my  face  so  gravely. 

"Look  here,  old  fellow,"  said  I,  talking 
audibly  to  him  for  want  of  something  in 
human  shape  to  address,  "you  didn't  lick 
my  face  just  now  when  you  might  have  done 


292  A  CRYSTAL  AGE 

so  with  impunity;  and  when  I  speak  to  you, 
you  don't  wag  that  beautiful  bushy  tail  which 
serves  you  for  ornament.  This  reminds  me 
that  you  are  not  like  the  dogs  I  used  to 
know — the  dogs  that  talked  with  their  tails, 
caressed  with  their  tongues,  and  were  never 
over-clean  or  well-behaved.  Where  are  they 
now — collies,  rat-worrying  terriers,  hounds, 
spaniels,  pointers,  retrievers — dogs  rough  and 
dogs  smooth;  big  brute  boarhounds,  St. 
Bernard's,  mastiffs,  nearly  or  quite  as  big  as 
you  are,  but  not  so  slender,  silky-haired, 
and  sharp-nosed,  and  without  your  refined 
expression  of  keenness  without  cunning. 
And  after  these  canine  noblemen  of  the  old 
regime,  whither  has  vanished  the  countless 
rabble  of  mongrels,  curs,  and  pariah  dogs; 
and  last  of  all — being  more  degenerate — the 
corpulent,  blear-eyed,  wheezy  pet  dogs  of  a 
hundred  breeds'?  They  are  all  dead,  no 
doubt:  they  have  been  dead  so  long  that  I 
daresay  nature  extracted  all  the  valuable 
salts  that  were  contained  in  their  flesh  and 
bones  thousands  of  years  ago,  and  used  it 
for  better  things — raindrops,  froth  of  the  sea, 
flowers  and  fruit,  and  blades  of  grass.     Yet 


A  CRYSTAL  AGE  293 

there  was  not  a  beast  in   all   that  crew   of 
which  its  master  or  mistress  was   not  ready 
to    affirm    that    it   could    do    everything   but 
talk!     No  one  says  that  of  you,  my  gentle 
guardian;   for  dog- worship,   with  all  the  ten 
thousand   fungoid  cults   that  sprang  up   and 
flourished  exceedingly  in  the  muddy  marsh  of 
man's  intellect,  has  withered  quite  away,  and 
left  no  seed.     Yet  in  intelligence  you  are,  I 
fancy,   somewhat  ahead  of  your  far-off  pro- 
genitors: long  use  has  also  given  you  some- 
thing  like   a   conscience.      You    are    a   good, 
sensible    beast,    that's    all.      You    love    and 
serve  your  master,  according  to  your  lights; 
night  and  day,  you,  with  your  fellows,  guard 
his    flocks    and   herds,    his    house    and   fields. 
Into  his  sacred  house,   however,   you  do  not 
intrude    your    comely    countenance,    knowing 
your  place. 

"What,  then,  happened  to  earth,  and  how 
long  did  that  undreaming  slumber  last  from 
which  I  woke  to  find  things  so  altered?  I 
do  not  know,  nor  does  it  matter  very  much. 
I  only  know  that  there  has  been  a  sort  of 
mighty  Savonarola  bonfire,  in  which  most  of 
the  things  once  valued  have  been  consumed  to 


294  A  CRYSTAL  AGE 

ashes — politics,  religions,  systems  of  philos- 
ophy, isms  and  ologies  of  all  descriptions; 
schools,  churches,  prisons,  poorhouses;  stimu- 
lants and  tobacco;  kings  and  parliaments;  can- 
non with  its  hostile  roar,  and  pianos  that 
thundered  peacefully;  history,  the  press,  vice, 
political  economy,  money,  and  a  million  things 
more — all  consumed  like  so  much  worthless  hay 
and  stubble.  This  being  so,  why  am  I  not 
overwhelmed  at  the  thought  of  it*?  In  that 
feverish,  full  age — so  full,  and  yet,  my  God, 
how  empty! — in  the  wilderness  of  every  man's 
soul,  was  not  a  voice  heard  crying  out, 
prophesying  the  end?  I  know  that  a  thought 
sometimes  came  to  me,  passing  through  my 
brain  like  lightning  through  the  foliage  of  a 
tree;  and  in  the  quick,  blighting  fire  of  that 
intolerable  thought,  all  hopes,  beliefs,  dreams, 
and  schemes  seemed  instantaneously  to  shrivel 
up  and  turn  to  ashes,  and  drop  from  me,  and 
leave  me  naked  and  desolate.  Sometimes 
it  came  when  I  read  a  book  of  philosophy; 
or  listened  on  a  still,  hot  Sunday  to  a  dull 
preacher — they  were  mostly  dull — prosing 
away  to  a  sleepy,  fashionable  congregation 
about  Daniel  in  the  lions'  den,  or  some  other 


A  CRYSTAL  AGE  295 

equally  remote  matter;  or  when  I  walked 
in  crowded  thoroughfares;  or  when  I  heard 
some  great  politician  out  of  office — out  in  the 
cold,  like  a  miserable  working-man  with  no 
work  to  do — hurling  anathemas  at  an  iniquitous 
government;  and  sometimes  also  when  I  lay- 
awake  in  the  silent  watches  of  the  night.  A 
little  while,  the  thought  said,  and  all  this  will 
be  no  more;  for  we  have  not  found  out  the 
secret  of  happiness,  and  all  our  toil  and  effort 
is  misdirected;  and  those  who  are  seeking 
for  a  mechanical  equivalent  of  consciousness, 
and  those  who  are  going  about  doing  good, 
are  alike  wasting  their  lives;  and  on  all  our 
hopes,  beliefs,  dreams,  theories,  and  enthusi- 
asms, 'Passing  away*  is  written  plainly  as  the 
Mene,  mene,  tekel,  upharsin  seen  by  Belshazzar 
on  the  wall  of  his  palace  in  Babylon. 

"That  withering  thought  never  comes  to 
me  now.  'Passing  Away*  is  not  written  on 
the  earth,  which  is  still  God's  green  footstool; 
the  grass  was  not  greener  nor  the  flowers 
sweeter  when  man  was  first  made  out  of  clay, 
and  the  breath  of  life  breathed  into  his  nostrils. 
And  the  human  family  and  race — outcome  of 
all   that   dead,   unimaginable   past — this   also 


296  A  CRYSTAL  AGE 

appears  to  have  the  stamp  of  everlastingness 
on  it;  and  in  its  tranquil  power  and  majesty 
resembles  some  vast  mountain  that  lifts  its 
head  above  the  clouds,  and  has  its  granite 
roots  deep  down  in  the  world's  center.  A 
feeling  of  awe  is  in  me  when  I  gaze  on  it; 
but  it  is  vain  to  ask  myself  now  whether  the 
vanished  past,  with  its  manifold  troubles  and 
transitory  delights,  was  preferable  to  this 
unchanging  peaceful  present.  I  care  for 
nothing  but  Yoletta;  and  if  the  old  world 
was  consumed  to  ashes  that  she  might  be 
created,  I  am  pleased  that  it  was  so  con- 
sumed; for  nobler  than  all  perished  hopes  and 
ambitions  is  the  hope  that  I  may  one  day 
wear  that  bright,  consummate  flower  on  my 
bosom. 

"I  have  only  one  trouble  now — a  wolf  that 
follows  me  everywhere,  always  threatening  to 
rend  me  to  pieces  with  its  black  jaws.  Not 
you,  old  friend — a  great,  gaunt,  man-eating, 
metaphorical  wolf,  far  more  terrible  than  that 
beast  of  the  ancients  which  came  to  the  poor 
man's  door.  In  the  darkness  its  eyes,  glowing 
like  coals,  are  ever  watching  me,  and  even 
in  the  bright  daylight   its  shadowy   form  is 


A  CRYSTAL  AGE  297 

ever  near  me,  stealing  from  bush  to  bush, 
or  from  room  to  room,  always  dogging  my 
footsteps.  Will  it  ever  vanish,  like  a  mere 
phantom — a  wolf  of  the  brain — or  will  it  come 
nearer  and  more  near,  to  spring  upon  and 
rend  me  at  the  last?  If  they  could  only 
clothe  my  mind  as  they  have  my  body,  to 
make  me  like  themselves  with  no  canker  at 
my  heart,  ever  contented  and  calmly  glad! 
But  nothing  comes  from  taking  thought.  I 
am  sick  of  thought — I  hate  it!  Away  with 
it!  I  shall  go  and  look  for  Yoletta,  since 
she  does  not  come  to  me.  Good-by,  old 
friend,  you  have  been  well-behaved  and 
listened  with  considerable  patience  to  a  long 
discourse.  It  will  benefit  you  about  as  much 
as  I  have  been  benefited  by  many  a  lecture 
and  many  a  sermon  I  was  compelled  to  listen 
to  in  the  old  vanished  days." 

Bestowing  another  caress  on  him  I  got 
up  and  went  back  to  the  house,  thinking 
sadly  as  I  walked  that  the  bright  weather 
had  not  yet  greatly  improved  my  spirits. 


XX 

Arrived  at  the  house  I  was  again  disappointed 
at  not  seeing  Yoletta;  yet  without  reasonable 
cause,  since  it  was  scarcely  past  midday,  and 
she  came  out  from  attending  on  her  mother 
only  at  long  intervals — in  the  morning,  and 
again  just  before  evening — to  taste  the  fresh- 
ness of  nature  for  a  few  minutes. 

The  music-room  was  deserted  when  I  went 
there;  but  it  was  made  warm  and  pleasant 
by  the  sun  shining  brightly  in  at  the  doors 
opening  to  the  south.  I  went  on  to  the 
extreme  end  of  the  room,  remembering  now 
that  I  had  seen  some  volumes  there  when  I 
had  no  time  or  inclination  to  look  at  them, 
and  I  wanted  something  to  read;  for  although 
I  found  reading  very  irksome  at  this  period, 
there  was  really  little  else  I  could  do.  I  found 
the  books — three  volumes — in  the  lower  part 
of  an  alcove  in  the  wall;  above  them,  within 

a  niche  in  the  alcove,  on  a  level  with  my  face 

298 


A  CRYSTAL  AGE  299 

as  I  stood  there,  I  observed  a  bulb-shaped 
bottle,  with  a  long  thin  neck,  very  beautifully 
colored.  I  had  seen  it  before,  but  without 
paying  particular  attention  to  it,  there  being 
so  many  treasures  of  its  kind  in  the  house; 
now,  seeing  it  so  closely,  I  could  not  help 
admiring  its  exquisite  beauty,  and  feeling 
puzzled  at  the  scene  depicted  on  it.  In  the 
widest  part  it  was  encircled  with  a  band,  and 
on  it  appeared  slim  youths  and  maidens,  in 
delicate,  rose-colored  garments,  with  butterfly 
wings  on  their  shoulders,  running  or  hurriedly 
walking,  playing  on  instruments  of  various 
forms,  their  faces  shining  with  gladness,  their 
golden  hair  tossed  by  the  wind — a  gay  pro- 
cession, without  beginning  or  end.  Behind 
these  joyful  ones,  in  pale  gray,  and  half- 
obscured  by  the  mists  that  formed  the  back- 
ground, appeared  a  second  procession,  hurrying 
in  an  opposite  direction — men  and  women  of 
all  ages,  but  mostly  old,  with  haggard,  woe- 
begone faces;  some  bowed  down,  their  eyes 
fixed  on  the  ground;  others  wringing  their 
hands,  or  beating  their  breasts;  and  all 
apparently  suffering  the  utmost  affliction  of 
mind. 


300  A  CRYSTAL  AGE 

Above  the  bottle  there  was  a  deep  circular 
cell  in  the  alcove,  about  fifteen  inches  in 
diameter;  fitted  in  it  was  a  metal  ring,  to 
which  were  attached  golden  strings,  fine  as 
gossamer  threads:  behind  the  first  ring  was 
a  second,  and  further  in  still  others,  ail  stringed 
like  the  first,  so  that  looking  into  the  cell  it 
appeared  filled  with  a  mist  of  golden  cobweb. 

Drawing  a  cushioned  seat  to  this  secluded 
nook,  where  no  person  passing  casually  through 
the  room  would  be  able  to  see  me,  I  sat  down, 
and  feeling  too  indolent  to  get  myself  a  read- 
ing-stand, I  supported  the  volume  I  had  taken 
up  to  read  on  my  knees.  It  was  entitled  Con- 
duct and  Ceremonial^  and  the  subject-matter 
was  divided  into  short  sections,  each  with  an 
appropriate  heading.  Turning  over  the  leaves, 
and  reading  a  sentence  here  and  there  in 
different  sections,  it  occurred  to  me  that  this 
might  prove  a  most  useful  work  for  me  to 
study,  whenever  I  could  bring  my  mind  into 
the  right  frame  for  such  a  task;  for  it  contained 
minute  instructions  upon  all  points  relating  to 
individual  conduct  in  the  house — as  the  enter- 
tainment of  pilgrims,  the  dress  to  be  worn, 
and  the  conduct  to  be  observed  at  the  various 


A  CRYSTAL  AGE  301 

annual  festivals,  with  other  matters  of  the 
kind.  Glancing  through  it  in  this  rapid  way,  I 
soon  finished  with  the  first  volume,  then  went 
through  the  second  in  even  less  time,  for 
many  of  the  concluding  sections  related  to 
lugubrious  subjects  which  I  did  not  care  to 
linger  over;  the  titles  alone  were  enough  to 
trouble  me — Decay  through  Age,  Ailments  of 
Mind  and  of  Body;  then  Death,  and,  finally, 
the  Disposal  of  the  Dead.  This  done  I  took 
up  the  third  volume,  the  last  of  the  series, 
the  first  portion  of  which  was  headed,  Renewal 
of  the  Family.  This  part  I  began  to  examine 
with  some  attention,  and  pretty  soon  discovered 
that  I  had  now  at  last  accidentally  stumbled 
upon  a  perfect  mine  of  information  of  the 
precise  kind  I  had  so  long  and  so  vainly  been 
seeking.  Struggling  to  overcome  my  agitation 
I  read  on,  hurrying  through  page  after  page 
with  the  greatest  rapidity;  for  there  was  here 
much  matter  that  had  no  special  interest  for 
me,  but  incidentally  the  things  which  concerned 
me  most  to  know  were  touched  on,  and  in  some 
cases  minutely  explained.  As  I  proceeded, 
the  prophetic  gloom  which  had  oppressed  me 
all  that  day,  and  for  so  many  days  before, 


302  A  CRYSTAL  AGE 

darkened  to  the  blackness  of  despair,  and 
suddenly  throwing  up  my  arms,  the  book 
slipped  from  my  knees  and  fell  with  a  crash 
upon  the  floor.  There,  face  downwards,  with 
its  beautiful  leaves  doubled  and  broken  under 
its  weight,  it  rested  unheeded  at  my  feet.  For 
now  the  desired  knowledge  was  mine,  and  that 
dream  of  happiness  which  had  illumined  my 
life  was  over.  Now  I  possessed  the  secret  of 
that  passionless,  everlasting  calm  of  beings  who 
had  for  ever  outlived,  and  left  as  immeasur- 
ably far  behind  as  the  instincts  of  the  wolf  and 
ape,  the  strongest  emotion  of  which  my  heart 
i  was  capable.  For  the  children  of  the  house 
there  could  be  no  union  by  marriage;  in  body 
and  soul  they  differed  from  me:  they  had  no 
name  for  that  feeling  which  I  had  so  often  and 
so  vainly  declared;  therefore  they  had  told 
me  again  and  again  that  there  was  only  one 
kind  of  love,  for  they,  alas!  could  experience 
one  kind  only.  I  did  not,  for  the  moment, 
seek  further  in  the  book,  or  pause  to  reflect 
on  that  still  unexplained  mystery,  which  was 
the  very  center  and  core  of  the  whole  matter, 
namely,  the  existence  of  the  father  and  mother 
in  the  house,  from  whose  union  the  family  was 


A  CRYSTAL  AGE  303 

renewed,  and  who,  fruitful  themselves,  were 
yet  the  parents  of  a  barren  race.  Nor  did  I 
ask  who  their  successors  would  be:  for  albeit 
long-lived,  they  were  mortal  like  their  own 
passionless  children,  and  in  this  particular 
house  their  lives  appeared  now  to  be  draw- 
ing to  an  end.  These  were  questions  I  cared 
nothing  about.  It  was  enough  to  know  that 
Yoletta  could  never  love  me  as  I  loved  her — 
that  she  could  never  be  mine,  body  and  soul, 
in  my  way  and  not  in  hers.  With  unspeak- 
able bitterness  I  recalled  my  conversation  with 
Chastel:  now  all  her  professions  of  affection 
and  goodwill,  all  her  schemes  for  smoothing 
my  way  and  securing  my  happiness,  seemed  to 
me  the  veriest  mockery,  since  even  she  had 
read  my  heart  no  better  than  the  others,  and 
that  chill  moonlight  felicity,  beyond  which  her 
children  were  powerless  to  imagine  anything, 
had  no  charm  for  my  passion-torn  heart. 

Presently,  when  I  began  to  recover  some- 
what from  my  stupefaction,  and  to  realize  the 
magnitude  of  my  loss,  the  misery  of  it  almost 
drove  me  mad.  I  wished  that  I  had  never 
made  this  fatal  discovery,  that  I  might  have 
continued    still    hoping    and    dreaming,    and 


304  A  CRYSTAL  AGE 

wearing  out  my  heart  with  striving  after  the 
impossible,  since  any  fate  would  have  been 
preferable  to  the  blank  desolation  which  now 
confronted  me.  I  even  wished  to  possess  the 
power  of  some  implacable  god  or  demon,  that 
I  might  shatter  the  sacred  houses  of  this  later 
race,  and  destroy  them  everlastingly,  and 
repeople  the  peaceful  world  with  struggling, 
starving  millions,  as  in  the  past,  so  that  the 
beautiful  flower  of  love  which  had  withered  in 
men's  hearts  might  blossom  again. 

While  these  insane  thoughts  were  passing 
through  my  brain  I  had  risen  from  my  seat, 
and  stood  leaning  against  the  edge  of  the 
alcove,  with  that  curious  richly-colored  bottle 
close  to  my  eyes.  There  were  letters  on  it, 
noticed  now  for  the  first  time — minute,  hair- 
like lines  beneath  the  strange-contrasted  proces- 
sionists depicted  on  the  band — and  even  in 
my  excited  condition  I  was  a  little  startled 
when  these  letters,  forming  the  end  of  a 
sentence,  shaped  themselves  into  the  words — 
and  for  the  old  life  there  shall  be  a  new  life. 

Turning  the  bottle  round  I  read  the  whole 
sentence.  When  time  and  disease  oppress,  and 
the  sun  grows  cold  in  heaven,  and  there  is  no 


A  CRYSTAL  AGE  305 

longer  any  joy  on  the  earth,  and  the  fire  of 
love  grows  cold  in  the  heart,  drink  of  me,  and 
for  the  old  life  there  shall  be  a  new  life. 

"Another  important  secret!"  thought  I;  "this 
day  has  certainly  been  fruitful  in  discoveries. 
A  panacea  for  all  diseases,  even  for  the  disease 
of  old  age,  so  that  a  man  may  live  two  hundred 
years,  and  still  find  some  pleasure  in  existence. 
But  for  me  life  has  lost  its  savor,  and  I  have 
no  wish  to  last  so  long.  There  is  more  writing 
here — another  secret  perhaps,  but  I  doubt  very 
much  that  it  will  give  me  any  comfort." 

When  your  soul  is  darkened,  so  that  it  is 
hard  to  know  evil  from  good,  and  the  thoughts 
that  are  in  you  lead  to  madness,  drink  of  me, 
and  be  cured. 

"No,  I  shall  not  drink  and  be  cured! 
Better  a  thousand  times  the  thoughts  that 
lead  to  madness  than  this  colorless  existence 
without  love.  I  do  not  wish  to  recover  from 
so  sweet  a  malady." 

I  took  the  bottle  in  my  hand  and  unstopped 
it.  The  stopper  formed  a  curious  little  cup, 
round  the  rim  of  which  was  written,  Drink  of 
me.  I  poured  some  of  the  liquid  out  into  the 
cup;  it  was   pale  yellow   in   color,   and  had 


306  A  CRYSTAL  AGE 

a  faint  sickly  smell  as  of  honeysuckles.  Then 
I  poured  it  back  again  and  replaced  the  bottle 
in  its  niche. 

Drink  and  be  cured.  No,  not  yet.  Some 
day,  perhaps,  my  trouble  increasing  till  it 
might  no  longer  be  borne,  would  drive  me 
to  seek  such  dreary  comfort  as  this  cure-all 
bottle  contained.  To  love  without  hope  was 
sad  enough,  but  to  be  without  love  was  even 
sadder. 

I  had  grown  calm  now:  the  knowledge 
that  I  had  it  in  my  power  to  escape  at  once 
and  for  ever  from  that  rage  of  desire,  had  served 
to  sober  my  mind,  and  at  last  I  began  to  reason 
about  the  matter.  The  nature  of  my  secret 
feelings  could  never  be  suspected,  and  in 
the  unsubstantial  realm  of  the  imagination 
it  would  still  be  in  my  power  to  hide  myself 
with  my  love,  and  revel  in  all  supreme  delight. 
Would  not  that  be  better  than  this  cure — 
this  calm  contentment  held  out  to  me1?  And 
in  time  also  my  feelings  would  lose  their 
present  intensity,  which  often  made  them  an 
agony,  and  would  come  at  last  to  exist  only 
as  a  gentle  rapture  stirring  in  my  heart  when 
I  clasped  my  darling  to  my  bosom  and  pressed 


A  CRYSTAL  AGE  307 

her  sweet  lips  with  mine.  Ah,  no!  that  was 
a  vain  dream,  I  could  not  be  deceived  by  it; 
for  who  can  say  to  the  demon  of  passion  in 
him,  thus  far  shalt  thou  go  and  no  further^ 

Perplexed  in  mind  and  unable  to  decide 
which  thing  was  best,  my  troubled  thoughts 
at  length  took  me  back  to  that  far-off  dead 
past,  when  the  passion  of  love  was  so  much  in 
man's  life.  It  was  much;  but  in  that  over- 
populated  world  it  divided  the  empire  of  his 
soul  with  a  great,  ever-growing  misery — the 
misery  of  the  hungry  ones  whose  minds  were 
darkened,  through  long  years  of  decadence, 
with  a  sullen  rage  against  God  and  man;  and 
the  misery  of  those  who,  wanting  nothing,  yet 
feared  that  the  end  of  all  things  was  coming 
to  them. 

For  the  space  of  half  an  hour  I  pondered 
on  these  things,  then  said:  "If  I  were  to 
tell  a  hundredth  part  of  this  black  retrospect 
to  Yoletta,  would  not  she  bid  me  drink  and 
forget,  and  herself  pour  out  the  divine  liquor, 
and  press  it  to  my  lips'?" 

Again  I  took  the  bottle  with  trembling 
hand,  and  filled  the  same  small  cup  to  the 
brim,  saying:     "For  your  sake  then,  Yoletta, 


308  A  CRYSTAL  AGE 

let  me  drink,  and  be  cured;  for  this  is  what 
you  would  desire,  and  you  are  more  to  me 
than  life  or  passion  or  happiness.  But  when 
this  consuming  fire  has  left  me — this  feeling 
which  until  now  burns  and  palpitates  in 
every  drop  of  my  blood,  every  fiber  of  my 
being — I  know  that  you  shall  still  be  to  me 
a  sweet,  sacred  sister  and  immaculate  bride, 
worshiped  more  of  my  soul  than  any  mother 
in  the  house;  that  loving  and  being  loved  by 
you  shall  be  my  one  great  joy  all  my  life  long." 
I  drained  the  cup  deliberately,  then  stopped 
the  bottle  and  put  it  back  in  its  place.  The 
liquor  was  tasteless,  but  colder  than  ice,  and 
made  me  shiver  when  I  swallowed  it.  I  began 
to  wonder  whether  I  would  be  conscious  of 
the  change  it  was  destined  to  work  in  me 
or  not;  and  then,  half  regretting  what  I  had 
done,  I  wished  that  Yoletta  would  come  to 
me,  so  that  I  might  clasp  her  in  my  arms 
with  all  the  old  fervor  once  more,  before  that 
icy-cold  liquor  had  done  its  work.  Finally,  I 
carefully  raised  the  fallen  book,  and  smoothed 
out  its  doubled  leaves,  regretting  that  I  had 
injured  it;  and,  sitting  down  again,  I  held 
the   open   volume   as   before,    resting   on   my 


A  CRYSTAL  AGE  309 

knees.  Now,  however,  I  perceived  that  it 
had  opened  at  a  place  some  pages  in  advance 
of  the  passages  which  had  excited  me;  but, 
feeling  no  desire  to  go  back  to  resume  my 
reading  just  where  I  had  left  off,  my  eyes 
mechanically  sought  the  top  of  the  page  before 
me,  and  this  is  what  I  read: 

"...  make  choice  of  one  of  the  daughters  of 
the  house;  it  is  fitting  that  she  should  rejoice 
for  that  brighter  excellence  which  caused  her 
to  be  raised  to  so  high  a  state,  and  to  have 
authority  over  all  others,  since  in  her,  with 
the  father,  all  the  majesty  and  glory  of  the 
house  is  centered;  albeit  with  a  solemn  and 
chastened  joy,  like  that  of  the  pilgrim  who, 
journeying  to  some  distant  tropical  region  of 
the  earth,  and  seeing  the  shores  of  his  native 
country  fading  from  sight,  thinks  at  one  and 
the  same  time  of  the  unimaginable  beauties 
of  nature  and  art  that  fire  his  mind  and  call 
him  away,  and  of  the  wide  distance  which 
will  hold  him  for  many  years  divided  from 
all  familiar  scenes  and  the  beings  he  loves 
best,  and  of  the  storms  and  perils  of  the 
great  wilderness  of  waves,  into  which  so 
many  have  ventured  and  have  not  returned. 
For  now  a  changed  body  and  soul  shall 
separate  her  forever  from  those  who  were 
one  in  nature  with  her;  and  with  that  superior 


310  A  CRYSTAL  AGE 

happiness  destined  to  be  hers  there  shall  be 
the  pains  and  perils  of  childbirth,  with  new 
griefs  and  cares  unknown  to  those  of  humbler 
condition.  But  on  that  lesser  gladness  had 
by  the  children  of  the  house  in  her  exaltation, 
and  because  there  will  be  a  new  mother  in 
the  house — one  chosen  from  themselves — 
there  shall  be  no  cloud  or  shadow;  and, 
taking  her  by  the  hand,  and  kissing  her  face 
in  token  of  joy,  and  of  that  new  filial  love 
and  obedience  which  will  be  theirs,  they 
shall  lead  her  to  the  Mother's  Room,  there- 
after to  be  inhabited  by  her  as  long  as  life 
lasts.  And  she  shall  no  longer  serve  in 
the  house  or  suffer  rebuke;  but  all  shall  serve 
her  in  love,  and  hold  her  in  reverence,  who 
is  their  predestined  mother.  And  for  the 
space  of  one  year  she  shall  be  without 
authority  in  the  house,  being  one  apart, 
instructing  herself  in  the  secret  books  which 
it  is  not  lawful  for  another  to  read,  and 
observing  day  by  day  the  directions  contained 
therein,  until  that  new  knowledge  and  practice 
shall  ripen  her  for  that  state  she  has  been 
chosen  to  fill." 

This  passage  was  a  fresh  revelation  to  me. 
Again  I  recalled  Chastel's  words,  her  repeated 
assurances  that  she  knew  what  was  passing 
in  my  mind,  that  her  eyes  saw  things  more 


A  CRYSTAL  AGE  311 

clearly  than  others  could  see  them,  that  only 
by  giving  me  the  desire  of  my  heart  could  the 
one  remaining  hope  of  her  life  be  fulfilled. 
Now  I  seemed  able  to  understand  these  dark 
sayings,  and  a  new  excitement,  full  of  the  joy 
of  hope,  sprang  up  in  me,  making  me  forget 
the  misery  I  had  so  recently  experienced,  and 
even  that  increasing  sensation  of  intense  cold 
caused  by  the  draught  from  the  mysterious 
bottle. 

I  continued  reading,  but  the  above  passage 
was  succeeded  by  minute  instructions,  extend- 
ing over  several  pages,  concerning  the  dress, 
both  for  ordinary  and  extraordinary  occasions, 
to  be  worn  by  the  chosen  daughter  during 
her  year  of  preparation;  the  conduct  to  be 
observed  by  her  towards  other  members  of 
the  family,  also  towards  pilgrims  visiting  the 
house  in  the  interval,  with  many  other  matters 
of  secondary  importance.  Impatient  to  reach 
the  end,  I  tried  to  turn  the  leaves  rapidly,  but 
now  found  that  my  arm  had  grown  strangely 
stiff  and  cold,  and  seemed  like  an  arm  of  iron 
when  I  raised  it,  so  that  the  turning  over  of 
each  leaf  was  an  immense  labor.  Then  I 
read  yet  another  page,  but  with  the  utmost 


312  A  CRYSTAL  AGE 

difficulty;  for,  notwithstanding  the  eagerness 
of  my  mind,  my  eyes  began  to  remain  more 
and  more  rigidly  fixed  on  the  center  of  the 
leaf,  so  that  I  could  scarcely  force  them  to 
follow  the  lines.  Here  I  read  that  the  bride- 
elect,  her  year  of  preparation  being  over,  rises 
before  daylight,  and  goes  out  alone  to  an 
appointed  place  at  a  great  distance  from  the 
house,  there  to  pass  several  hours  in  solitude 
and  silence,  communing  with  her  own  heart. 
Meanwhile,  in  the  house  all  the  others  array 
themselves  in  purple  garments,  and  go  out 
singing  at  sunrise  to  gather  flowers  to  adorn 
their  heads;  then,  proceeding  to  the  appointed 
spot,  they  seek  for  their  new  mother,  and, 
finding  her,  lead  her  home  with  music  and 
rejoicing. 

When,  reading  in  this  miserable,  painful 
way,  I  had  reached  the  bottom  of  the  page, 
and  attempted  to  turn  it  over,  I  found  that  I 
could  no  longer  move  my  hand — my  arms 
being  now  like  arms  of  iron,  absolutely  devoid 
of  sensation,  while  my  hands,  rigidly  grasping 
the  book  like  the  hands  of  a  frozen  corpse, 
held  it  upright  and  motionless  before  me.  I 
tried  to  start  up  and  shake  off  this  strange 


A  CRYSTAL  AGE  313 

deadness  from  my  body,  but  was  powerless  to 
move  a  muscle.  What  was  the  meaning  of 
this  condition?  for  I  had  absolutely  no  pain, 
no  discomfort  even;  for  the  sensation  of  in- 
tense cold  had  almost  ceased,  and  my  mind 
was  active  and  clear,  and  I  could  hear  and  see, 
and  yet  was  as  powerless  as  if  I  had  been 
buried  in  a  marble  coffin  a  thousand  fathoms 
deep  in  earth. 

Suddenly  I  remembered  the  draught  from 
the  bottle,  and  a  terrible  doubt  shot  through 
my  heart.  Alas!  had  I  mistaken  the  meaning 
of  those  strange  words  I  had  read*? — was 
death  the  cure  which  that  mysterious  vessel 
promised  to  those  who  drank  of  its  contents'? 
"When  life  becomes  a  burden,  it  is  good 
to  lay  it  down";  now  too  late  the  words  of 
the  father,  when  reproving  me  after  my  fever, 
came  back  to  my  mind  in  all  their  awful 
significance. 

All  at  once  I  heard  a  voice  calling  my 
name,  and  in  a  moment  the  tempest  in  me 
was  stilled.  Yes,  it  was  my  darling's  voice — 
she  was  coming  to  me — she  would  save  me 
in  this  dire  extremity.  Again  and  again  she 
called,    but    the    voice    now    sounded    further 


3H  A  CRYSTAL  AGE 

and  further  away;  and  with  ineffable  anguish 
I  remembered  that  she  would  not  be  able 
to  see  me  where  I  sat.  I  tried  to  cry  out, 
"Come  quick,  Yoletta,  and  save  me  from 
death!"  but  though  I  mentally  repeated  the 
words  again  and  again  in  an  extreme  agony 
of  terror,  my  frozen  tongue  refused  to  make 
a  sound.  Presently  I  heard  a  light,  quick 
step  on  the  floor,  then  Yoletta's  clear  voice. 

"Oh,  I  have  found  you  at  last!"  she 
cried.  "I  have  been  seeking  you  all  over 
the  house.  I  have  something  glad  to  tell 
you — something  to  make  you  happier  than 
on  that  day — do  you  remember? — when  you 
saw  me  coming  to  you  in  the  wood.  The 
mother  has  left  her  chamber  at  last;  she 
is  in  the  Mother's  Room  again,  waiting 
impatiently  to  see  you.     Come,  come!" 

Her  words  sounded  distinctly  in  my  ears, 
and  although  I  could  not  lift  or  turn  my 
rigid  eyes  to  see  her,  yet  I  seemed  to  see 
her  now  better  than  ever  before,  with  some 
fresh  glory,  as  of  a  new,  unaccustomed  glad- 
ness or  excitement  enhancing  her  unsurpassed 
loveliness,  so  clearly  at  that  moment  did 
her  image  shine  in  my  soul!     And  not  hers 


A  CRYSTAL  AGE  315 

only,  for  now  suddenly,  by  a  miracle  of 
the  mind,  the  entire  family  appeared  there 
before  me;  and  in  the  midst  sat  Chastel,  my 
sweet,  suffering  mother,  as  on  that  day  after 
my  illness  when  she  had  pardoned  me,  and 
put  out  her  hand  for  me  to  kiss.  As  on  that 
occasion,  now — now  she  was  gazing  on  me 
with  such  divine  love  and  compassion  in 
her  eyes,  her  lips  half  parted,  and  a  slight 
color  flushing  her  pale  face,  recalling  to  it 
the  bloom  and  radiance  of  which  cruel  disease 
had  robbed  her!  And  in  my  soul  also,  at 
that  supreme  moment,  like  a  scene  starting 
at  the  lightning's  flash  out  of  thick  darkness, 
shone  the  image  of  the  house,  with  all  its 
wide,  tranquil  rooms  rich  in  art  and  ancient 
memories,  every  stone  within  them  glowing, 
with  everlasting  beauty — a  house  enduring 
as  the  green  plains  and  rushing  rivers  and 
solemn  woods  and  world-old  hills  amid  which 
it  was  set  like  a  sacred  gem!  O  sweet  abode 
of  love  and  peace  and  purity  of  heart!  O 
bliss  surpassing  that  of  the  angels!  O  rich 
heritage,  must  I  lose  you  for  ever!  Save 
me  from  death,  Yoletta,  my  love,  my  bride — 
save  me — save  me — save  me ! 


316  A  CRYSTAL  AGE 

Then  something  touched  or  fell  on  my 
neck,  and  at  the  same  moment  a  deeper 
shadow  passed  over  the  page  before  me,  with 
all  its  rich  coloring  floating  formless,  like 
vapors,  mingling  and  separating,  or  dancing 
before  my  vision,  like  bright-winged  insects 
hovering  in  the  sunlight;  and  I  knew  that 
she  was  bending  over  me,  her  hand  on  my 
neck,  her  loose  hair  falling  on  my  forehead. 

In  that  enforced  stillness  and  silence  I 
waited  expectant  for  some  moments. 

Then  a  great  cry,  as  of  one  who  suddenly 
sees  a  black  phantom,  rang  out  loud  in  the 
room,  jarring  my  brain  with  the  madness  of 
its  terror,  and  striking  as  with  a  hundred 
passionate  hands  on  all  the  hidden  harps  in 
wall  and  roof;  and  the  troubled  sounds  came 
back  to  me,  now  loud  and  now  low,  burdened 
with  an  infinite  anguish  and  despair,  as  of 
voices  of  innumerable  multitudes  wandering  in 
the  sunless  desolations  of  space,  every  voice 
reverberating  anguish  and  despair;  and  the 
successive  reverberations  lifted  me  like  waves 
and  dropped  me  again,  and  the  waves  grew 
less  and  the  sounds  fainter,  then  fainter  still, 
and  died  in  everlasting  silence. 

THE    END 


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